University  of  California  •  Berkeley 

DALE  L.  MORGAN 
MEMORIAL  FUND 


^  / 


.«.*• 


THE  LIFE  OF 


HON.  WILLIAM  F.  CODY 


KNOWN  AS 


BUFFALO     BILL 


THE  FAMOUS 


HUNTER,  SCOUT  AND  GUIDE. 


AN  AUTOBIOGRAPHY: 


HARTFORD,  CONN: 
FRANK   E.    BLISS. 


COPYRIGHT,  1879, 
by  F.  E.  BLISS. 

All  rights  reserved. 


GENERAL  PHILIP  II.  SHERIDAN, 

THIS  BOOK  IS  MOST  RESPECTFULLY  DEDICATED  BY 

THE  AUTHOK. 


(Fac-Simile  of  commendatory  letter  from  Lieut.  Gen.  Philip  P.  Sheridan.) 
^Headquarters  Military  ^Division  of  the  Missouri, 


INTRODUCTORY. 

The  life  and  adventures  of  Hon.  Wijliam  F.  Cody — Buffalo 
Bill— as  told  by  himself,  make  up  a  narrative  which  reads  more 
like  romance  than  reality,  and  which  in  many  respects  will  prove 
a  valuable  contribution  to  the  records  of  our  Western  frontier 
history.  While  no  literary  excellence  is  claimed  for  the  narra- 
tive, it  has  the  greater  merit  of  being  truthful,  and  is  verified 
in  such  a  manner  that  no  one  can  doubt  its  veracity.  The  fre- 
quent reference  to  such  military  men  as  Generals  Sheridan,  Carr, 
Merritt,  Crook,  Terry,  Colonel  Royal,  and  other  officers  under 
whom  Mr.  Cody  served  as  scout  and  guide  at  different  times  and 
in  various  sections  of  the  frontier,  during  the  numerous  Indian 
campaigns  of  the  last  ten  or  twelve  years,  affords  ample  proof  of 
of  his  genuineness  as  a  thoroughbred  scout. 

There  is  no  humbug  or  braggadocio  about  Buffalo  Bill.  He  is 
known  far  and  wide,  and  his  reputation  has  been  earned  honest- 
ly and  by  hard  work.  ly  a  combination  of  circumstances  he 
was  educated  to  the  life  of  a  plainsman  from  his  youth  up  ;  and 
not  the  least  interesting  portion  of  his  career  is  that  of  his  early 
life,  passed  as  it  was  in  Kansas  during  the  eventful  and  trouble- 
ous  times  connected  with  the  settlement  of  that  state.  Spend- 
ing much  time  in  the  saddle,  while  a  mere  boy  he  crossed  the 
plains  many  times  in  company  with  bull-trains  ;  on  some  of  these 
trips  he  met  with  thrilling  adventures  and  had  several  hair- 
breadth escapes  from  death  at  the  hands  of  Indians.  Then,  for 
a  while,  he  was  dashing  over  the  plains  as  a  pony-express  rider. 
Soon  afterwards,  mounted  on  the  high  seat  of  an  overland  stage- 
coach, he  was  driving  a  six-in-hand  team.  We  next  hear  of 


vi  INTRODUCTORY. 

him  cracking  the  bull-whacker's  whip,  and  commanding  a  wagon- 
train  through  a  wild  and  dangerous  country  to  the  far  West. 
During  the  civil  war  he  enlisted  as  a  private,  and  became  a  scout 
with  the  Union  army  ;  since  the  war  he  has  been  emplo3red  as 
hunter,  trapper,  guide,  scout  and  actor.  As  a  buffalo  hunter  he 
has  no  superior ;  as  a  trailer  of  Indians  he  has  no  equal.  For 
many  yeafls  he  has  taken  an  active  part  in  all  the  principal  Indi- 
an campaigns  on  the  Western  frontier,  and  as  a  scout  and  guide 
he  has  rendered  inestimable  services  to  the  various  expeditions 
which  he  accompanied. 

During  his  life  on  the  plains  he  not  only  had  many  exciting 
adventures  himself,  but  he  became  associated  with  many  of  the 
other  noted  plainsmen,  and  in  his  narrative  he  frequently  refers 
to  them  and  relates  many  interesting  incidents  and  thrilling 
events  connected  with  them.  He  has  had  a  fertile  field  from 
which  to  produce  this  volume,  and  has  frequently  found  it  neces- 
sary to  condense  the  facts  in  order  to  embody  the  most  interesting 
events  of  his  life.  The  following  from  a  letter  written  by  General 
E.  A.  Carr,  of  the  Fifth  Cavalry,  now  commanding  Fort  McPher- 
son,  speaks  for  itself : 

"  I  first  met  Mr.  Cody,  October  22d,  1868,  at  Buffalo  Station,  on  the 
Kansas  Pacific  railroad,  in  Kansas.  He  was  scout  and  guide  for  the  seven 
companies  of  the  Fifth  Cavalry,  then  under  Colonel  Royal,  and  of  which  I 
was  ordered  to  take  the  command.  *  *  *  * 

"From  his  services  with  my  command,  steadily  in  the  field  for  nine 
months,  from  October,  1868,  to  July,  1861),  and  at  subsequent  times,  I  am 
qualified  to  bear  testimony  to  his  qualities  and  character. 

"  He  was  very  modest  and'  unassuming.  I  did  not  know  for  a  long  time 
how  good  a  title  he  had  to  the  appellation,  'Buffalo  Bill.'  I  am  apt  to  dis- 
count the  claims  of  scouts,  as  they  will  occasionally  exaggerate;  and  when  I 
found  one  who  said  nothing  about  himself,  I  did  not  think  much  of  him,  till 
I  had  proved  him.  He  is  a  natural  gentleman  in  his  manners  as  well  as  in 
character,  and  has  none  of  the  roughness  of  the  typical  frontiersman.  He 
can  take  his  own  part  when  required,  but  1  have  never  heard  of  his  using  a 
knife  or  a  pistol,  or  engaging  in  a  quarrel  where  it  could  be  avoided.  His 
personal  strength  and  activity  are  such  that  he  can  hardly  meet  a  man  whom 
he  cannot  handle,  and  his  temper  and  disposition  are  so  good  that  no  one  has 
reason  to  quarrel  with  him. 

"His  eye-sight  is  better  than  a  good  field  glass;  he  is  the  best  trailer  I 
ever  heard  of;  and  also  the  best  judge  of  the  'lay  of  country,'— that  is, 


INTRODUCTORY.  vii 

he  is  able  to  tell  what  kind  of  country  is  ahead,  so  as  to  know  how  to  act. 
He  is  a  perfect  judge  of  distance,  and  always  ready  to  tell  correctly  how 
many  miles  it  is  to  water,  or  to  any  place,  or  how  many  miles  have  been 
inarched.  *  *  *  * 

"Mr.  Cody  seemed  never  to  tire  and  was  always  ready  to  go,  in  the  dark- 
est night  or  the  worst  weather,  and  usually  volunteered,  knowing. what  the 
emergency  required.  His  trailing,  when  following  Indians  or  looking  for 
stray  animals  or  game,  is  simply  wonderful.  He  is  a  most  extraordinary 
hunter.  I  could  not  believe  that  a  man  could  be  certain  to  shoot  antelope 
running  till  I  had  seen  him  do  it  so  often. 

"  In  a  fight  Mr.  Cody  is  never  noisy,  obstreperous  or  excited.  In  fact,  I 
never  hardly  noticed  him  in  a  fight,  unless  I  happened  to  want  him,  or  he 
had  something  to  report,  when  he  was  always  in  the  right  place,  and  his  in- 
formation was  always  valuable  and  reliable. 

"  During  the  winter  of  1C63,  we  encountered  hardships  and  exposure  in 
terrific  snow  storms,  sfeet,  etc.,  etc.  On  one  occasion,  that  winter,  Mr. 
Cody  showed  his  quality  by  quietly  offering  to  go  with  some  dispatches  to 
General  Sheridan,  across  a  dangerous  region,  where  another  principal  scout 
was  reluctant  to  risk  himself. 

"  On  the  13th  of  May,  1C69,  he  was  in  the  fight  at  Elephant  Rock,  Kansas, 
and  trailed  the  Indians  till  the  IGth,  when  we  got  another  fight  out  of  them 
on  Spring  Creek,  in  Nebraska,  and  scattered  them  after  following  them  one 
hundred  and  fifty  miles  in  three  days.  It  was  at  Spring  Creek  where  (  ody 
was  ahead  of  the  command  about  three  miles,  with  the  advance  guard  of 
forty  men,  when  two  hundred  Indians  suddenly  surrounded  them.  Our  men 
dismounted  and  formed  in  a  circle,  holding  their  horses,  firing  and  slowly  re- 
treating. They  all,  to  this  day,  speak  of  C'ody's  coolness  and  bravery. 
This  was  the  Dog  Soldier  band  winch  captured  Mrs.  Alderdice  and  Mrs. 
Weichel  in  Kansas.  They  strangled  Mrs  Alderdice's  baby,  killed  Mrs. 
Weichel's  husband,  and  took  a  great  deal  of  property  and  stock  from  differ- 
ent persons.  We  got  on  their  trail  again,  June  28th,  and  followed  it  nearly 
two  hundred  miles,  till  we  struck  the  Indians  on  Sunday,  July  llth,  1  69, 
at  Summit  Spring.  The  Indians,  as  soon  as  they  saw  us  coming,  killed 
Mrs.  Alderdice  with  a  hatchet,  and  shot  Mrs.  Weichel,  but  fortunately  not 
fatally,  and  she  was  saved. 

"  Mr.  Cody  has  since  served  with  me  as  post  guide  and  scout  at  Fort  Mc- 
Pherson,  where  he  frequently  distinguished  himself.  *  *  *  * 

"  In  the  summer  of  1R76,  Cody  went  with  me  to  the  Black  Hills  region^ 
where  he  killed  Yellow-Hand.  Afterwards  he  was  with  the  Big  Horn  and 
Yellowstone  expedition.  I  consider  that  his  services  to  the  country  and  the 
army  by  trailing,  finding  and  fighting  Indians,  and  thus  protecting  the 
frontier  settlers,  and  by  guiding  commands  over  the  best  and  most  practi- 
cable routes,  have  been  far  beyond  the  compensation  he  has  received.  His 
friends  of  the  Fifth  Cavalry  are  all  glad  that  he  is  in  a  lucrative  business, 
and  hope  that  he  may  live  long  and  prosper.  Personally,  I  feel  under 


viii  INTRODUCTORY. 

obligations  to  him  for  assistance  in   my  campaigns  which  no  other  man 

could,  or  would,   have  rendered.     Of  course   I  wish  him,  and   his,  every 

success. 

FORT  McPHEEsoN,  NEBRASKA,      )  E.  A.  CARR,  Lt.  Col.  5th  Cav., 

July  3d,  1878  $  Brev.  Maj.  Gen'l  U.  S.  Army. 

Buffalo  Bill  is  now  an  actor,  and  is  meeting  with  success.  He 
owns  a  large  and  valuable  farm  adjoining  the  town  of  North 
Platte,  Nebraska,  and  there  his  family  live  in  ease  and  comfort. 
He  has  also  an  extensive  cattle  ranch  on  the  Dismal  river,  sixty- 
five  miles  north  of  North  Platte,  his  partner  being  Major  Frank 
North,  the  old  commander  of  the  celebrated  Pawnee  scouts.  While 
man)r  events  of  his  career  are  known  to  the  public,  yet  the  reader 
will  find  in  this  narrative  much  that  will  be  entirely  new  and  in- 
tensely interesting  to  both  young  and  old. 

THE  PUBLISHER. 


Jllustraiions. 


PAG*. 

THE  AUTHOR,   PORTRAIT,  ON  STEEL FRONTISPIECE — 

YOUTHFUL  ADVENTURES ^. 19 

SAMUEL'S  FATAL  ACCIDENT ! 21 

BILLINGS  AS  A  BOCARBO 81 

BILLINGS  RIDING  LITTLE  GBAY „ 35 

EXCITING  SPORT (FULL  PAGE) 36 

STAKING  OUT  LOTS 40 

MY  FATHER  STABBED 42 

MY  FATHER'S  ESCAPE „ k 43 

LIFE  OR  DEATH 45 

BOYISH  SPORT 52 

TWOTOO.VE „ 54 

KILLING  MY  KIRST  INDIAN (FULLPAGE) 60 

A  PRAIRIE  SCHOONER (FULL  PAG E) 67 

WILD  BILL (PORTRAIT) 71 

HOLDING  THE  FORT (FULL  PAGE; 81 

CAMPING  IN  A  SEPULCHRE. (FULL  PAGK) 87 

RAFTING  ON  THE  PLATTE 90 

RIDING  POXY  EXPRESS 92 

SAVED  BY  CHIEF  RAIN  IN-THE-FACE (FULL  PAGE)...' ...      96 

CHANGING  HORSES 105 

ATTACK  ov  STAGE  COACH 106 

ALF.  SLADE  Ki I.LING  THE  DRIVER '. 109 

TH«  HORSE  THIEVES  DE.V (FULLPAGE) 113 

MY  ESCAPE  FROM  THE  HORS'E  THIEVES 116 

BOB  SCOTT'S  FAMOUS  COACH  RIDE (FULL  PAGE) 122 

"NEARLY  EVERY  MAN  HAD  Two  HORSES" 126 

WILD  BILL  AND  THE  OUTLAWS (FULLPAGE) 12» 

WILD  BILL'S  DUEL 133 

GENER  \LGEO.  A.  CUSTER (PORTRAIT) 147 

DEPARTING  RICHES. 151 

TONGUES  AND  TENDERLOINS 156 

THR  INDIAN  HORSE  THIEVES.  . 159- 

THE  MAN  WHO  FIRED  THE  GUN 160 

BUFFALO  Bi I.L  (FULL  PAGE) 163 

"DOWN  WENT  His  HORSE" 165 

THE  FIRE  SIGNAL 169 

KIT  CARSON (PORTRAIT) 170 

A  GOOD  HORSE 177 

A  BIG  JOKE 179 

AMBUSHING  THE  INDIANS (FULL  PAGE) 184 

WHOA  THERE! - 189 

DELIVERING  DISPATCHES  TO  GENERAL  RHKRIDAN 191 

THE  Two  TRAMPS •••   Wl 


x  ILLUSTRATIONS. 

CARRYING  DISPATCHES 199 

GEN'L  PHIL.  SHERIDAN (PORTRAIT) 201 

BATTLE  ONTHE  AKICKAREE 204 

BRINGING  MEAT  INTO  CAMP 208 

"INDIANS!" 209 

GENERAL  E.  A.  CARR (PORTRAIT) 210 

A  CRACK  SHOT 213 

A  HARD  CROWD 217 

CAMPING  IN  THE  SNOW (FULL  PAGE) 220 

A  WELCOME  VISITOR 225 

ANTELO  :  ES 228 

THE  RECAPTURE  OF  BEVINS (FULL  PAGE) 239 

BOBBING  A  STAGE  COACH 242 

INDIAN  VILLAGE (FULL  PAGE) 257 

THE  KILLING  OF  TALL  BULL 261 

AN  OLD  BONE 267 

A  WEDDING  CEREMONY 278 

A  HIDE  FOR  LIFE 279 

PRAIRIE  DOG  VILLAGE 285 

MCCARTHY'S  FRIGHT 291 

FINDING  THE  KEMAINS  OF  THE  BUCK  PARTY (FULL  PAGE) 293 

SPOTTKD  TAIL (FOR  RAIT) 297 

GRAND  DUKE  ALEXIS (PORTRAIT) 299 

INDIAN  EXERCISES 300 

TWO-LANCE  KILLING  A  BUFFALO SOS 

AN  EMBARRASSING  SITUATION 307 

TEXAS  JACK (PORTRAIT) 316 

RIFLES 319 

STUDYING  THE  PARTS 324 

BEHIND  THE  FOOTLIGHTS 326 

LEARNING  THE  GAME 832 

GETTING  SATISFACTION 834 

A  DUKL  WITH  CHIEF  YELLOW-HAND (FULL  PAGE) 345 

SCOUTING  ON  A  STEAMBOAT , 354 

CLOSE  QUARTERS 358 

ONE  OP  THE  TROUPE 364 


CHAPTER  I. 

CHILDHOOD. 

Early  Days  in  Iowa — A  Brother's  Death—  Th0  Family  Move  to  a  New- 
Country — Incidents  on  the  Road — The  Horse  Race — Our  "Little 
Gray  "  Victorious— A  Pleasant  Acquaintance— Uncle  Elijah  Cody 

— Our  New  Home — My  Ponies 17 

CHAPTER  II. 

EARLY    INFLUENCES. 

Dress  Parade  atFort  Leavenworth— The  Beautiful  Salt  Creek  Valley — 
The  Mormon  Emigrants— The  Wagon  Trains— The  Cholera— A 
Lively  Scene — My  Eirst  Sight  of  Indians — "  Dolly  "  and  "  Prince '' 
— A  Long-Lost  Relative  Turns  up — Adventurous  Career  of  Horace 
Billings— His  Splendid  Horsemanship  — Catching  Wild  Horses. ...  26 
CHAPTER  III 

BOY    DAYS    IN    KANSAS. 

My  Indian  Acquaintances — An  Indian  Barbecue — Beginning  of  the 
Kansas  Troubles — An  Indiscreet  Speech  by  my  Father,  who  is 
Stabbed  for  his  Boldness  -Persecutions  at  the  Hands  of  the 
Missourians — A  Strategic  Escape — A  Battle  at  Hickory  Point — A 
Plan  to  Kill  Father  is  Defeated  by  Myself  -He  is  Elected  to  the 
Lecompton  Legislature — I  Enter  the  Employ  of  William  Russell 
— Herding  Cattle— A  Plot  to  Blow  Up  our  House— A  Drunken 

Missourian  on  the  War-Path.         ....         38 

CHAPTER  IV. 

YOUTHFUL    EXPERIENCES. 

At  School  — My  First  Love  Scrape— I  Punish  my  Rival,  and  then  Run 
Away -My  First  Trip  Across  the  Plains— Steve  Gobel  and  I 
are  Friends  once  more— Death  of  my  Father— I  Start  forSalt  Lake 
— Our  Wagon  Train  Surprised  by  Indians,  who  Drive  us  off,  and 
Capture  our  Outfit  —I  Kill  my  First  Indian— Our  Return  to  Leaven- 
worth— I  am  Interviewed  by  a  Newspaper  Reporter,  who  gives  me 
a  Good  "Send-Off"..  53 


xii  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  V. 

IN   BUSINESS. 

My  Second  Trip  Across  the  Plains— The  Salt  Lake  Trail— Wild  Bill- 
He  Protects  me  from  the  Assault  of  a  Bully— A  Buffalo  Hunt 

Our  Wagon  Train  Stampeded  by  Buffaloes— We  are  Taken  Pris- 
oners by  the  Mormons— We  Proceed  to  Fort  Bridger 64 

CHAPTER  VI. 

HARD    TIMES. 

A  Dreary  Winter  At  Fort  Bridger— Short  Rations — Mule  Steaks — 
Homeward  Bound  in  the  Spring— A  Square  Meal— Corraled  by 
Indians — A  Mule  Barricade — We  Hold  the  Fort — Home  Again — 
Off  for  the  West— Trapping  on  the  Chugwater  And  Laramie 
Rivers —We  go  to  Sleep  in  a  Human  Grave — A  Horrifying  Dis- 
covery—A  Jollification  at  Oak  Grove  Ranch — Home  Once  More — 
I  go  to  School — The  Pike  s  Peak  Gold  Excitement— Down  the 

Platte  River  on  a  Raft — I  Become  a  Pony  Express  Rider 78 

CHAPTER   VII. 

ACCIDENTS    AND    ESCAPES. 

Trapping  on  Prairie  Dog  Creek  -An  Accident  whereby  we  Lose  one  of 
our  Oxen — I  Fall  and  Break  my  Leg — Left  Alone  in  Camp — Unwel- 
come Visitors  —A  Party  of  Hostile  Sioux  Call  upon  me  and  Make 
Themselves  at  Home — Old  Rain-in-the-Face  Saves  my  Life — Snow- 
Bound — A  Dreary  Imprisonment — Return  of  my  Partner — A  Joy- 
ful Meeting— We  Pull  Out  for  Home— Harrington  Dies. . .- 93 

CHAPTER   VIII. 

ADVENTURES  ON  THK  OVERLAND  ROAD. 

Introduction  to  Alf.  Slade— He  Employs  me  as  a  Pony  Express  Rider 
— I  Make  a  Long  Ride— Indians  Attack  an  Overland  Stage  Coach 
— Wild  Bill  Leads  a  Successful  Expedition  against  the  Indians — A 
Grand  Jollification  at  Sweetwater  Bridge — Slade  Kills  a  Stage 
Driver— The  End  of  the  Spree — A  Bear  Hunt— I  fall  among  Horse 

Thieves— My  Escape — I  Guide  a  Party  to  Capture  the  Gang 103 

CHAPTER  IX. 

FAST    DRIVING. 

Bob  Scott,  the  Stage  Driver— The  Story  of  the  Most  Reckless  Piece  of 

Stage  Driving  that  ever  Occurred  on  the  Overland  Road 119 

CHAPTER  X. 

QUESTIONABLE    PROCEEDINGS. 

The  Civil  War— Jayhawking— Wild  Bill's  Fight  with  the  McCandless 
Gang  of  Desperadoes — I  become  Wild  Bill's  Assistant  Wagon- 
Master — We  Lose  our  Last  Dollar  on  a  Horse  Race — He  becomes 
a  Government  Scout — He  has  a  Duel  at  Springfield 125 


CONTENTS. 

.A.  Ill 

CHAPTER  XI. 

A    SOLDIER. 

Scouting  against  the  Indians  in  the  Kiowa  and  Comanche  country— The 

Red-Legged  Scouts — A  Trip  to  Denver— Death  of  my  Mother 

I  Awake  one  Morning  to  Find  myself  a  Soldier — I  am  put  on  De- 
tached Service  as  a  Scout— The  Chase  after  Price — An  Unexpect- 
ed Meeting  with  Wild  Bill— An  Unpleasant  Situation— Wild  Bill's 
Escape  from  the  Southern  Lines — The  Charge  upon  Price's  Army 

— We  return  to  Springfield - 134 

CHAPTER   XII. 

A    WEDDING. 

I  Fall  in  Lore—A  Successful  Courting  Expedition — I  am  Married — 
The  Happiest  Event  of  my  Life— Our  Trip  up  the  Missouri  River — 
The  Bushwhackers  Come  after  me— I  become  Landlord  of  a  Hotel 
— Off  for  the  Plains  once  more — Scouting  on  the  Frontier  for  the 
Government — A  Ride  with  General  Custer — An  Expedition  from 
Fort  Hays  has  a  Lively  Chase  after  Indians— Cholera  in  Camp..  141 
CHAPTER  XIII. 

A    MILLIONAIRE. 

A  Town  Lot  Speculation—"  A  Big  Thing  "—I  become  Half-Owner  of  a 
City— Corner  Lots  R?served  —Rome's  Rapid  Rise— We  consider 
ourselves  Millionaires  —Dr.  Webb — Hays  City — We  Regard  our- 
selves as  Paupers — A  Race  with  Indians — Captain  Graham's  Scout 

after  the  Indians 149 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

EARNING    A    TITLE. 

Hunting  for  the  Kansas  Pacific — How  I  got  my  Name  of  "  Buffalo  Bill" 
— The  Indians  give  me  a  Lively  Chase — They  get  a  Dose  of  their 
own  Medicine — Another  Adventure — Scottyand  myself  Corraled  by 

Indians— A  Fire  Signal  brings  Assistance— Kit  Carson 161 

CHAPTER  XV. 

CHAMPION    BUFFALO    KILLER. 

A  Buffalo  Killing  Match  with  Billy  Comstock— An  Excursion  party  from 
St.  Louis  come  out  to  Witness  the  Sport — I  win  the  Match,  and 

am  declared  the  Champion  Buffalo  Killer  of  the  Plains 171 

CHAPTER   XVI. 

A    COURIER 

Scouting — Captured  by  Indians— A  Strategic  Escape— A  Hot  Pursuit 
— The  Indians  led  into  an  Ambush— Old  Satanta's  Tricks  and  Threats 
— Excitement  at  Fort  Lamed  — '  lerders  and  Wood-Choppers  Killed 
by  the  Indians — A  Perilous  Ride— I  get  into  the  wrong  Pew— Safe 
arrival  at  Fort  Hays— Interview  with  General  Sheridan— My  ride 
to  Fort  Dodge — I  return  to  Fort  Lamed — My  Mule  gets  away  from 
me— A  long  Walk— The  Mule  Passes  In  his  Chips 178 


xiv  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

AN    APPOINTMENT. 

General  Sheridan  appoints  me  Guide  ,and  Chief  of  Scouts  of  the  Fifth 
Cavalry— The  Dog  Soldiers— General  Forsyth's  Fight  on  the 
Arickaree  Fork 200 

CHAPTER   XVIII. 

SCOUTING. 

Arrival  of  the  Fifth  Cavalry  at  Fort  Hays— Out  on  a  Scout — A  little 
Skirmish  with  Indians — A  Buffalo  Hunt — A  False  Alarm  in  camp — 
A  Scout  on  the  Beaver — The  Supply  Camp  is  Surprised — Arrival  of 
General  Carr — The  new  Lieutenant  and  his  Reception — Another 
Indian  Hunt — An  Engagement — A  Crack  Shot— I  have  a  little 
Indian  fight  of  my  own — Return  to  Fort  Wallace — While  hunting 
Buffaloes  with  a  small  Party,  we  are  Attacked  by  Fifty  Indians. . . .  206 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

A   TOUGH   TIME. 

A  Winter's  Campaign  in  the  Canadian  River  Country — Searching  for 
Penrose's  Command — A  Heavy  Snow- Storm — Taking  the  Wagon 
Train  down  a  Mountain  Side— Camp  Turkey— Darkey  Deserters 
from  Penrose's  Command — Starvation  in  Penrose's  Camp — We 
reach  the  Command  with  Timely  Relief— Wild  Bill— A  Beer  Jollifi- 
cation— Hunting  Antelopes — Return  to  Fort  Lyon 218 

CHAPTER  XX. 

AN   EXCITING    CHASE. 

A  Difficulty  with  a  Quartermaster's  Agent — I  give  him  a  Severe  Pound- 
ing— A  Stormy  Interview  with  General  Bankhead  and  Captain 
Laufer — I  put  another  "Head''  on  the  Quartermaster's  Agent — I 
am  Arrested — In  the  Guard-House — General  Bankhead  Releases 
me— A  Hunt  after  Horse  Thieves— Their  Capture — Escape  of 
Bevins — His  Recapture — Escape  of  Williams — Bevins  Breaks  Out 
of  Jail — His  Subsequent  Career 229 

CHAPTER  XXI. 

A    MILITARY    EXPEDITION. 

The  Fifth  Cavalry  is  Ordered  to  the  Department  of  the  Platte— Liquids 
vs.  Solids — A  Skirmish  with  the  Indians— Arrival  at  Fort  McPher- 
son — Appointed  Chief  of  Scouts— Major  Frank  North  and  the 
Pawnee  Scouts— Belden  the  White  Chief— The  Shooting  Match- 
Review  of  the  Pawnee  Scouts — An  Expedition  against  the  Indians 
— "  Buckskin  Joe  " 243 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 


XV 


A   DESPERATE    FIGHT. 

Pawnees  vs.  Siouxs — We  strike  a  Large  Trail — The  Print  of  a  Woman's 
Shoe — The  Summit  Springs  Fight — A  Successful  Charge — Capture 
of  the  Indian  Village — Rescue  of  a  White  Woman — One  hundred 
and  forty  Indians  Killed— I  kill  Tall  Bull  and  Capture  his  Swift 
Steed — The  Command  proceeds  to  FortSedgwick — Powder  Face — 

/  A  Scout  after  Indian  Horse-Thieves — "Ned  Buntline  " — "Tall 
Bull "  as  a  Racer — Powder  Face  wins  a  Race  without  a  Rider — 

An  Expedition  to  the  Niobrara — An  Indian  Tradition 254 

CHAPTER  XXIII. 

ADMINISTERING    JUSTICE. 

I  make  my  Home  at  Fort  McPherson — Arrival  of  my  Family — Hunting 
and  Horse  Racing — An  Indian  Raid-y  Powder  Face  Stolen — A 
Lively  Chase — An  Expedition  to  the  Republican  River  Country — 
General  Duncan — A  Skirmish  with  the  Indians — A  Stern  Chase — 
An  Addition  to  my  Family — Kit  Carson  Cody — I  am  made  a  Justice 
of  the  Peace — A  Case  of  Replevin — I  perform  a  Marriage  Cere- 
mony—Professor Marsh's  Fossil- Hunting  Expedition 268 

CHAPTER   XXIV. 

HUNTING    EXPEDITIONS. 

The  Grand  Hunt  of  General  Sheridan,  James  Gordon  Bennett,  and 
other  Distinguished  Gentlemen— From  Fort  McPherson  to  Fort 
Hays — Incidents  of  the  Trip — "Ten  Days  on  the  Plains"— Gen- 
eral Carr's  Hunting  Expedition — A  Joke  on  McCarthy — A  Search 
for  the  Remains  of  Buck's  Surveying  Party,  who  had  been  Mur- 
dered by  the  Indians 281 

CHAPTER   XXV. 

HUNTING   WITH    A    GRAND   DUKE. 

The  Grand  Duke  Alexis  Hunt— Selection  of  a  Camp— I  Visitr  Spotted 
Tail's  Camp— The  Grand  Duke  and  Party  arrive  at  Camp  Alexis- 
Spotted  Tail's  Indians  give  a  Dance — The  Hunt — Alexis  Kills  his 
First  Buffalo— Champagne — The  Duke  Kills  another  Buffalo — 
More  Champagne — End  of  the  Hunt— Departure  of  the  Duke  and 
his  Party ...  295 

CHAPTER  XXVI. 

SIGHT-SEEING. 

My  Visit  in  the  East— Reception  in  Chicago— Arrival  in  New  York — I 
am  well  Entertained  by  my  old  Hunting  Friends— I  View  the  Sights 
of  the  Metropolis— Ned  Buntline— The  Play  of  "  Buffalo  Bill  "—I 
am  Called  Upon  to  make  a  Speech — A  Visit  to  my  Relatives — 
Return  to  the  West 306 


CONTENTS. 
CHAPTER  XXVII. 


Arrival  of  the  Third  Cavalry  at  Fort  McPherson  —  A  Scout  after  Indians 

—  A  Desperate  Fight  with  Thirteen  Indians  —  A  Hunt  with  the  Earl 
of  Dunraven  —  A  Hunt  with  a  Chicago  Party  —  Milligan's  Bravery  — 
Neville  —  I  am  Elected  to  the  Nebrask  i  Legislature  .............  313 

CHAPTER   XXVIII. 

AN   ACTOR. 

I  resolve  to  go  upon  the  Stage  —  I  resign  my  Seat  in  the  Legislature  — 
Texas  Jack—"  The  Scouts  of  the  Plains  "—A  Crowded  House—  A 
Happy  Thought  —  A  Brilliant  Debut  —  A  Tour  of  the  Country  .......  320 

CHAPTER  XXIX. 

STARRING, 

The  Theatrical  Season  of  1773-74  -Wild  Bill  and  his  Tricks—  He 
Leaves  us  at  Rochester  —  lie  becomes  a  "  Star"  —  A  Bogus  "  Wild 
Bill  "—A  Hunt  with  Thomas  P.  Medley,  an  English  gentleman  — 
A  Scout  on  the  Powder  River  and  in  the  Big  Horn  Country  —  Cali- 
fornia Joe  —  Theatrical  Tour  of  1^74  and  Io75  —  Death  of  my  son, 
Kit  L  arson  Cody  ..............................................  329 

CHAPTER   XXX. 

A   RETURN    TO    THE    PLAINS. 

The  Sioux  Campaign  of    1376  —  I  am  appointed  Guide  and  Chief  of 
Scouts  of  the  Fifth  Cavalry  —  An  Engagement  with  eight  hundred 
C  heyennes  —  A  Duel   with  Yellow  Hand  —  Generals  Terry  and  Crook 
meet,  and  co-operate  '1  ogether  .........  .  .......................  340 

CHAPTER  XXXI. 

DANGEROUS    WORK. 

Scouting  on  a  Steamboat—  Captain  Grant  Marsh  —  A  Trip  down  the 
Yellowstone  River  —  Acting  as  Dispatch  Carrier  —  I  Return  East  and 
open  my  Theatrical  Season  with  a  New  Play  —  Immense  Audiences 

—  I  go,into  the  Cattle  Business  in  company  with  Major  Frank  North 
—My  Home  at  North  Platte  ..........................  .  ........  353 

CHAPTER   XXXII. 

. 

CONCLUSION. 

A  Cattle  "  Round-up"  —  A  Visit  to  My  Family  in  our  New  Home  —  A 
A  Visit  from  my  Sisters  —  I  go  to  Denver  —  Buying  more  <  attle  — 
Pnwnee  and  Nez-Perccs  Indians  Engaged  for  a  Theatrical  Tour  — 
The  Season  of  1878-79  —  An  experience  in  Washington  —  Home 
Once  More.  .  ...............  362 


CHAPTER   I. 

CHILDHOOD.         „ 

MY  debut  upon  the  world's  stage  occurred  on  February 
26th,  1845.  The  scene  of  this  first  important  event  in 
my  adventurous  career,  being  in  Scott  county,  in  the  State 
of  Iowa.  My  parents,  Isaac  and  Mary  Ann  Cody,  who  were 
numbered  among  the  pioneers  of  Iowa,  gave  tome  the  name 
of  William  Frederick.  I  was  the  fourth  child  in  the  family. 
Martha  and  Julia,  my  sisters,  and  Samuel  my  brother,  had 
preceded  me,  and  the  children  who  came  after  me  were  Eliza, 
Nellie,  Mary  and  Charles,  born  in  the  order  named. 

At  the  time  of  my  birth  the  family  resided  on  a  farm 
which  they  called  "  Napsinekee  Place," — an  Indian  name — 
and  here  the  first  six  or  seven  years  of  my  childhood  were 
spent.  When  I  was  about  seven  years  old  my  father  moved 
the  family  to  the  little  town  of  LeClair,  located  on  the  bank 
of  the  Mississippi,  fifteen  miles  above  the  city  of  Davenport. 
Even  at  that  early  age  my  adventurous  spirit  led  me  into  all 
sorts  of  mischief  and  danger,  and  when  I  look  back  upon  my 
childhood's  days  I  often  wonder  that  I  did  not  get  drowned 
while  swimming  or  sailing,  or  my  neck  broken  while  I  was 
stealing  apples  in  the  neighboring  orchards. 

I  well  remember  one  day  that  I  went  sailing  with  two  other 
boys ;  in  a  few  minutes  we  found  ourselves  in  the  middle 
of  the  Mississippi ;  becoming  frightened  at  the  situation  we 
2  17 


18  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

lost  our  presence  of  mind,  as  well  as  our  oars.  We  at  once 
set  up  a  chorus  of  pitiful  yells,  when  a  man,  who  fortu- 
nately heard  us,  came  to  our  rescue  with  a  canoe  and 
towed  us  ashore.  We  had  stolen  the  boat,  and  our  trouble 
did  not  end  until  we  had  each  received  a  merited  whipping, 
which  impressed  the  incident  vividly  upon  my  mind.  I  recol- 
lect several  occasions  when  I  was  nearly  eaten  up  by  a  large 
and  savage  dog,  which  acted  as  custodian  of  an  orchard  and 
also  of  a  melon  patch,  which  I  frequently  visited.  Once,  as 
I  was  climbing  over  the  fence  with  a  hatful  of  apples,  this 
dog,  which  had  started  forme,  caught  me  by  the  seat  of  the 
pantaloons,  and  while  I  clung  to  the  top  of  the  fence  he 
literally  tore  them  from  my  legs,  but  fortunately  did  not 
touch  my  flesh.  I  got  away  with  the  apples,  however,  by 
tumbling  over  to  the  opposite  side  of  the  fence  with  them. 

It  was  at  LeClnir  that  I  acquired  my  first  experience  as  an 
equestrian.  Somehow  or  other  I  had  managed  to  corner 
a  horse  near  a  fence,  and  had  climbed  upon  his  back.  The 
next  moment  the  horse  got  his  back  up  and  hoisted  me  into 
the  air,  I  fell  violently  to  the  ground,  striking  upon  my  side 
in  such  a  way  as  to  severely  wrench  and  strain  my  arm,  from 
the  effects  of  which  I  did  not  recover  fur  some  time.  I 
abandoned  the  art  of  horsemanship  for  a  while,  and  was 
induced  after  considerable  persuasion  to  turn  my  attention 
to  letters — my  A,  B,  C's — which  were  taught  me  at  the  village 
school. 

My  father  at  this  time  was  running  a  stage  line  between 
Chicago  and  Davenport,  no  railroads  then  having  been  built 
west  of  Chicago.  In  1849  he  got  the  California  fever  and 
made  up  his  mind  to  cross  the  great  plains — which  were  then 
and  for  years  afterwards  called  the  American  Desert — to  the 
Pacific  coast.  He  got  ready  a  complete  outfit  and  started 
with  quite  a  party.  After  proceeding  a  few  miles,  all  but 
my  father,  and  greatly  to  his  disappointment,  changed  their 
minds  for  some  reason  and  abandoned  the  enterprise.  They 
all  returned  home,  and  soon  afterwards  father  moved  hia 


MEMORIES  OF  CHILDHOOD. 


19 


YOUTHFUL   ADVENTURES. 


y  out  to  Walnut  Grove 
Farm,  in  Scott  county. 

"While  living  there  I  was 
sent  to  school,  more  for  the 
purpose  *>f  being  kept  out  of 
mischief  than  to  learn  any- 
thing. Much  of  my  time  was 
spent  in  trapping  quails, 
which  were  very  plentiful.  I 
greatly  enjoyed  studying  the 
habits  of  the  little  birds,  and 
in  devising  traps  to  take  them 
in.  I  was  most  successful 
with  the  common  figure  "  4  " 
trap  which  1  could  build  my- 
self. Thus  I  think  it  was  that 
I  acquired  my  love  for  hunt- 
ing. I  visited  the  quail  traps 
twice  a  day,  morning  and 
evening,  and  as  I  had  now 
become  quite  a  good  rider  I 
was  allowed  to  have  one  of 
the  farm  horses  to  carry  me 
over  my  route.  JVlany  a  jolly 
ride  I  had  and  many  a  boyish 
prank  was  perpetrated  after 
getting  well  away  from  and 
out  of  the  sight  of  home  with 
the  horse. 


20  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

There  was  one  event  which  occurred  in  my  childhood, 
which  I  cannot  recall  without  a  feeling  of  sadness.  It  was 
the  death  of  my  brother  Samuel,  who  was  accidently  killed 
in  his  twelfth  year. 

My  father  at  the  time,  being  considerable  of  a  politician  as 
well  as  a  farmer,  was  attending  apolitical  convention;  for 
he  was  well  known  in  those  days  as  an  old  line  Whig.  He 
had  been  a  member  of  the  Iowa  legislature,  was  a  Justice  of 
the  Peace,  and  had  held  other  offices.  He  was  an  excellent 
stump  speaker  and  was  often  called  upon  to  canvass  the 
country  round  about  for  different  candidates.  The  con- 
vention which  he  was  attending  at  the  time  of  the  accident 
was  being  held  at  a  cross-road  tavern  called  "  Sherman's," 
about  a  mile  away. 

Samuel  and  1  had  gone  out  together  on  horseback  for  the 
cows.  He  rode  a  vicious  mare,  which  mother  had  told  him 
time  and  again  not  to  ride,  as  it  had  an  ugly  disposition. 
We  were  passing  the  school  house  just  as  the  children  were 
being  dismissed,  when  Samuel  undertook  to  give  an  exhibition 
of  his  horsemanship,  he  being  a  good  rider  for  a  boy.  The 
mare,  Betsy,  became  unmanageable,  reared  and  fell  back- 
ward upon  him,  injuring  him  internally.  He  was  picked  up 
and  carried  amid  great  excitement  to  the  house  of  a  neighbor. 

I  at  once  set  out  with  my  horse  at  the  top  of  his  speed  for 
my  father, and  informed  him  of  Samuel's  mishap.  lie  took 
the  horse  and  returned  immediately.  When  I  arrived  at  Mr. 
Burns'  house,  where  my  brother  was,  I  found  my  father, 
mother  and  sisters  there,  all  weeping  bitterly  at  Samuel's 
bedside.  A  physician,  after  examining  him,  pronounced 
his  injuries  to  be  of  a  fatal  character.  He  died  the  next 
morning. 

My  brother  was  a  great  favorite  with  everybody,  and  his 
death  cast  a  gloom  upon  the  whole  neighborhood.  It  was  a 
great  blow  to  all  of  the  family,  and  especially  to  father  who 
seemed  to  be  almost  heart  broken  over  it. 

Father  had  been  greatly  disappointed  at  the  failure  of  his 


THE  FAMILY  REMOVES  FROM  IOWA. 


21 


California  expedition,  and  still  desired  to  move  to  some  new 
country.  The  death  of  Samuel  no  doubt  increased  this 
desire,  and  he  determined  to  emigrate.  Accordingly,  early 


in  the  spring  of  1852,' 
he  disposed  of  his  farm,' 
and  late  in  March  we 

took   our    departure  for  SAMUEL'S  FATAL  ACCIDENT. 

Kansas,  which  was  then  an  unsettled  territory.  Onr  outfit 
consisted  of  one  carnage,  three  wagons  and  some  fine  blooded 
horses.  The  carriage  was  occupied  by  my  mother  and 
sisters.  Thus  we  left  our  Iowa  home. 

'Father  had  a  brother,  Elijah  Cody,  living  at  Weston, 
Platte  county,  Missouri.  He  was  the  leading  merchant  of 
the  place.  As  the  town  was  located  near  the  Kansas  line 
father  determined  to  visit  him,  and  thither  onr  journey  was 
directed.  Our  route  lay  across  Iowa  and  Missouri,  and  the 
trip  proved  of  interest  to  all  of  us,  and  especially  to  me. 
There  was  something  new  to  be  seen  at  nearly  every  turn  of 
the  road.  At  night  the  family  generally  "  put  up  "  at  hotels 
or  cross-road  taverns  along  the  way. 


22  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

One  day  as  we  were  proceeding  on  our  way,  we  were  met 
by  a  horseman  who  wanted  to  sell  his  horse,  or  trade  him  for 
another.  He  said  the  horse  had  been  captured  wild  in  Cal- 
ifornia ;  that  he  was  a  runner  and  a  racer ;  that  he  had  been 
sold  by  his  different  owners  on  account  of  his.  great  desire 
to  run  away  when  taking  part  in  a  race. 

The  stranger  seemed  to  be  very  frank  in  his  statements, 
and  appeared  to  be  very  anxious  to  get  rid  of  the  animal, 
and  as  we  were  going  to  Kansas  where  there  would  be  plenty 
of  room  for  the  horse  to  run  as  far  as  as  he  pleased,  father 
concluded  to  make  a  trade  for  him ;  so  an  exchange  of 
animals  was  easily  and  satisfactorily  effected. 

The  new  horse  being  a  small  gray,  we  named  him  "Little 
Gray." 

An  opportunity  of  testing  the  racing  qualities  of  the  horse 
was  soon  afforded.  One  day  we  drove  into  a  small  Missouri 
town  or  hamlet  which  lay  on  our  route,  where  the  farm- 
ers from  the  surrounding  country  were  congregated  for  the 
purpose  of  having  a  holiday — the  y>rincipal  amusement  being 
horse-racing.  Father  had  no  trouble  in  arranging  a  race  for 
Little  Gray,  and  selected  one  of  his  teamsters  to  ride  him. 

The  Missonrians  matched  their  fastest  horse  against  him 
and  were  confident  of  cleaning  out  ''the  emigrant,"  as  they 
called  father.  They .  were  a  hard  looking  crowd.  They 
wore  their  pantaloons  in  their  boots;  their  hair  was  long, 
bushy  and  untrimed ;  their  faces  had  evidently  never 
made  the  acquaintance  of  a  razor.  They  seemed  determined 
to  win  the  race  by  fair  means  or  foul.  They  did  a  great  deal 
of  swearing,  and  swaggered  about  in  rather  a  ruffianly  style. 

All  these  incidents  attracted  my  attention — everything 
being  new  to  me — and  became  firmly  impressed  upon  my 
memory.  My  father,  being  unaccustomed  to  the  ways  of 
such  rough  people,  acted  very  cautiously  ;  and  as  they  were 
all  very  anxious  to  bet  on  their  own  horse,  he  could  not  be 
induced  to  wager  a  very  large  sum  on  Little  Gray,  as  he 
was  afraid  of  foul  play. 


LITTLE  GRAY  WINS  A  RACE.  23 

"  Wa-al,  now,  stranger,"  exclaimed  one  of  the  crowd, 
"  what  kind  o'critter  have  you  got  anyhow,  as  how  you're 
afraid  to  back  him  up  very  heavy?" 

"  I'll  bet  five  to  one  agin  the  emergrant's  gray,"  said  another. 

"  I'm  betting  the  same  way.  I'll  go  yer  five  hundred 
dollars  agin  a  hundred  that  the  gray  nag  gits  left  behind. 
Do  I  hear  any  man  who  wants  to  come  agin  me  on  them  yer 
terms?"  shouted  still  another. 

"  Hi !  yer  boys,  give  the  stranger  a  chance.  Don't  scare 
him  out  of  his  boots,"  said  a  man  who  evidently  was  afraid 
that  my  father  might  back  out. 

Father  had  but  little  to  say,  however,  and  would  not 
venture  more  than  fifty  dollars  on  the  result  of  the  race. 

"  Gentlemen,  I  am  only  racing  my  horse  for  sport,"  said 
he,  "and  am  on^y  betting  enough  to  make  it  interesting.  I 
have  never  seen  Little  Gray  run,  and  therefore  don't  know 
what  he  can  do;"  at  the  same  time  he  was  confident  that 
his  horse  would  come  in  the  winner,  as  he  had  chosen  an 
excellent  rider  for  him. 

Finally  all  the  preliminaries  of  the  contest  were  arranged. 
The  judges  were  chosen  and  the  money  was  deposited  in  the 
hands  of  a  stake-holder.  The  race  was  to  be  a  single  dash 
of  a  mile.  The  horses  were  brought  side  by  side  and  mount- 
ed by  their  riders. 

At  the  signal — "  One,  two,  three,  go  !  " — off  they  started 
like  a  flash.  The  Missouri  horse  took  the  lead  for  the  first 
quarter  of  amilo;  at  the  half-mile,  however,  he  began  to 
weaken.  The  Missourians  shouted  themselves  hoarse  in 
urging  their  horse,  but  all  to  no  avail.  The  Little  Gray 
passed  him  and  continued  to  leave  him  farther  and  farther 
behind,  easily  winning  the  race. 

The  affair  created  a  great  deal  of  enthusiasm ;  but  the 
race  was  conducted  with  honor  and  fairness,  which  was  quite 
an  agreeable  surprise  to  my  father,  who  soon  found  the 
Missourians  to  be  at  heart  very  clever  men — thus  showing 
that  outside  appearances  are  sometimes  very  deceptive; 


24:  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

they  nearly  all  came  up  and  congratulated  him  on  his  success, 
asked  him  why  he  had  not  bet  more  money  on  the  race,  and 
wanted  to  buy  Little  Gray. 

"  Gentlemen,"  said  he,  "  when  I  drove  up  here  and  ar- 
ranged for  this  race,  I  felt  confident  that  my  horse  would 
win  it.  I  was  among  entire  strangers,  and  therefore  I  only 
bet  a  small  amount.  I  was  afraid  that  you  would  cheat  me 
in  some  way  or  other.  I  see  now  that  1  was  mistaken,  as  I 
have  found  you  to  be  honorable  men." 

"  Wa-all,  you  could  have  broke  me"  said  the  man  who 
wanted  to  bet  the  live  hundred  dollars  to  one  hundred,  "for 
that  there  nag  o'  yourn  looks  no  more  like  a  runner  nor  I  do." 

During  our  stay  in  the  place  they  treated  us  very  kindly, 
and  continued  to  try  to  purchase  Little  Gray.  My  father, 
however,  remained  n'rm  in  his  determination  not  to  part 
with  him. 

The  next  place  of  interest  which  we  reached,  after  resum- 
ing our  journey,  was  within  twenty  miles  of  Weston.  We 
had  been  stopping  at  farm  houses  along  the  road,  and  could 
not  get  anything  to  eat  in  the  shape  of  bread,  except  corn 
bread,  of  which  all  had  become  heartily  tired.  As  we  were 
driving  along,  we  saw  in  the  distance  a  large  and  handsome 
brick  residence.  Father  said  :  "  They  probably  have  white 
bread  there." 

We  drove  up  to  the  house  and  learned  that  it  was  owned 
and  occupied  by  Mrs.  Burns ;  mother  of  a  well-known  law- 
yer of  that  name,  who  is  now  living  in  Leavenworth.  She 
was  a  wealthy  lady,  and  gave  us  to  understand  in  a  pleasant 
way,  that  she  did  not  entertain  travelers.  My  father,  in  the 
course  of  the  conversation  with  her,  said :  "  Do  you  know 
Elijah  Cody?" 

"Indeed,  I  do,"  said  she;  "he  frequently  visits  us,  and 
we  visit  him  ;  we  are  the  best  of  friends." 

"  He  is  a  brother  of  mine,"  said  father. 

"  Is  it  possible  !  "  she  exclaimed  ;  "  Why,  you  must  remain 
here  all  night.  Have  your  family  come  into  the  house  at 
once.  You  must  not  go  another  step  to-day." 


OUR  ARRIVAL  AT  WESTON.  25 

The  kind  invitation  was  accepted,  and  we  remained  there 
over  night.  As  father  had  predicted,  we  found  plenty  of 
white  bread  at  this  house,  and  it  proved  quite  a  luxurious  treat. 

My  curiosity  was  considerably  aroused  by  the  many  ne- 
groes which  I  saw  about  the  premises,  as  I  had  scarcely  ever 
seen  any  colored  people,  the  few,  being  on  the  steamboats  as 
they  passed  up  and  down  the  Mississippi  river. 

The  next  day  my  father  and  mother  drove  over  to  Wes- 
ton  in  a  carriage,  and  returned  with  my  Uncle  Elijah.  We 
then  all  proceeded  to  his  house,  and  as  Kansas  was  not  yet 
open  for  settlement  as  a  territory,  we  remained  there  a  few 
days,  while  father  crossed  over  into  Kansas  on  a  prospecting- 
tour.  He  visited  the  Kickapoo  agency — five  miles  above 
Weston — on  the  Kansas  side  of  the  Missouri  river.  He 
became  acquainted  with  the  agent,  and  made  arrangements- 
to  establish  himself  there  as  an  Indian  trader.  He  then 
returned  to  Weston  and  located  the  family  on  one  of  Elijah 
Cody's  farms,  three  miles  from  town,  where  we  were  to  re- 
main until  Kansas  should  be  thrown  open  for  settlement.. 
After  completing  these  arrangements,  he  established  a  trad- 
ing-post at  Salt  Creek  Valley,  in  Kansas,  four  miles  from 
the  Kickapoo  agency. 

One  day,  after  he  had  been  absent  some  little  time,  he 
came  home  and  said  that  he  had  bought  two  ponies  for  me, 
and  that  next  morning  he  would  take  me  over  into  Kansas. 
This  was  pleasant  news,  as  I  had  been  very  anxious  to  go 
there  with  him,  and  the  fact  that  I  was  now  the  owner  of 
two  ponies  made  me  feel  very  proud.  That  night  I  could  not 
sleep  a  wink.  In  the  morning  I  was  up  long  before  the 
sun,  and  after  an  early  breakfast,  father  and  I  started  out 
on  our  trip.  Crossing  the  Missouri  river  at  the  Rialto 
Ferry,  we  landed  in  Kansas  and  passed  along  to  Fort 
Leavenworth,  four  miles  distant. 


CHAPTER  II. 

EARLY    INFLUENCES. 

ENEKAL  HAKNEY  was  in  command  at  Fort  Leaven. 
\J  worth  at  the  time  of  our  visit,  and  a  regiment  of  cavalry 
was  stationed  there.  They  were  having  a  dress  parade  when 
we  rode  up,  and  as  this  was  the  first  time  that  I  had  ever 
seen  any  soldiers,  I  thought  it  was  a  grand  sight.  I  shall 
never  forget  it,  especially  the  manoeuvres  on  horseback. 

After  witnessing  the  parade  we  resumed  our  journey.  On 
the  way  to  my  fathers  trading  camp  we  had  to  cross  over  a 
high  hill  known  as  Salt  Creek  Hill,  from  the  top  of  which 
we  looked  down  upon  the  most  beautiful  valley  I  have  ever 
seen.  It  was  about  twelve  miles  long  and  five  miles  wide. 
The  different  tributaries  of  Salt  Creek  came  down  from  the 
range  of  hills  at  the  southwest.  At  the  foot  of  the  valley 
another  small  river — Plum  Creek,  also  flowed.  The  bluffs 
fringed  with  trees,  clad  in  their  full  foliage,  added  greatly  to 
the  picturesquene>s  of  the  scene. 

While  this  beautiful  valley  greatty  interested  me,  yet  the 
most  novel  sight,  of  an  entirely  different  character,  which  met 
my  enraptured  gaze,  was  the  vast  number  of  white-covered 
wagons,  or  "  prairie-schooners,"  which  were  encamped  along 
the  different  streams.  I  asked  my  father  what  they  were  and 
where  they  were  going ;  he  explained  to  me  that  they  were 
emigrant  wagons  bound  for  Utah  and  California. 

26 


SALT  CREEK  VALLEY.  27 

At  that  time  the  Mormon  and  California  trails  ran  through 
this  valley,  which  was  always  selected  as  a  camping  place. 
There  were  at  least  one  thousand  wagons  in  the  valley,  and 
their  white  covers  lent  a  pleasing  contrast  to  the  green  grass. 
The  cattle  were  quietly  grazing  near  the  wagons,  while  the 
emigrants  were  either  resting  or  attending  to  camp  duties. 

A  large  number  of  the  wagons,  as  I  learned  from  my 
father,  belonged  to  Majors  &  Russell,  the  great  go veiL merit 
freighters.  They  had  several  trains  there,  each  consisting  of 
twenty-live  wagons,  heavily  loaded  with  government  sup- 
plies. They  were  all  camped  and  corraled  in  a  circle. 

While  we  were  viewing  this  scene,  a  long  wagon  train 
came  pulling  up  the  hill,  bound  out  from  Fort  Leaven  worth 
to  some  distant  frontier  post.  The  cattle  were  wild  and  the 
men  were  whipping  them  fearfully,  tho  loud  reports  of  the 
bull-whips  sounding  like  gun-shots.  They  were  "  doubling- 
up,"  and  some  of  the  wagons  were  being  drawn  by  lilUen 
yokes  of  oxen.  I  remember  asking  my  father  a  great  immy 
questions,  and  he  explained  to  me  all  about  the  freighting 
business  across  the  great  plains,  and  told  me  about  the  differ- 
ent government  posts. 

Pointing  over  to  the  army  of  wagons  camped  below  us,  he 
showed  me  which  were  the  Mormons'  and  which  were  the 
Californians',  and  said  that  we  must  steer  clear  of  the 
former  as  the  cholera  was  raging  among  them.  Five  hun- 
dred had  died  that  spring— 1853— and  the  grave-yard  was 
daily  increasing  its  dimensions.  The  -unfortunate  people 
had  been  overtaken  by  the  dreadful  disease,  and  had  been 
compelled  to  halt  on  their  journey  until  it  abated. 

While  we  were  looking  at  the  Mormons  they  were  holding 
a  funeral  service  over  the  remains  of  some  of  their  number 
who  had  died.  Their  old  cemetery  is  yet  indicated  by 
various  land-marks,  which,  however,  with  the  few  remaining 
head-boards,  are  fast  disappearing. 

We  passed  on  through  this  "  Yalley  of  Death,"  as  it 
might  then  have  been  very  appropriately  called,  and  after 


28  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

riding  for  some  time,  my  father  pointed  out  a  large  hill  and 
showed  me  his  camp,  which  afterwards  became  our  home. 

There  was  another  trading-post  near  by,  which  was  con- 
ducted by  Mr.  M.  P.  Rively,  who  had  a  store  built,  partly 
frame,  and  partly  of  logs.  We  stopped  at  this  establishment 
for  a  while,  and  found  perhaps  a  hundred  men,  women  and 
children  gathered  there,  engaged  in  trading  and  gossipping. 
The  men  had  huge  pistuls  and  knives  in  their  belts ;  their 
pantaloons  were  tucked  in  their  boots;  and  they  wore  large 
broad-rimmed  hats. 

To  me  they  appeared  like  a  lot  of  cut-throat  pirates  who 
had  come  ashore  for  a  lark.  It  was  the  first  time  I  had  ever 
seen  men  carrying  pistols  and  knives,  and  they  looked  like  a 
very  dangerous  crowd.  Some  were  buying  articles  of  mer- 
chandise ;  others  were  talking  about  the  cholera,  the  various 
camps,  and  matters  of  interest;  while  others  were  drinking 
whisky  freely  and  becoming  intoxicated.  It  was  a  busy  and 
an  exciting  scene,  and  Rively  appeared  to  be  doing  a  rushing 
trade. 

At  some  little  distance  from  the  store  I  noticed  a  small 
party  of  dark-skinned  and  rather  fantastically  dressed  peo- 
ple, whom  I  ascertained  were  Indians,  and  as  I  had  never 
be  fore  seen  a  real  live  Indian,  I  was  much  interested  in  them. 
I  went  over  and  endeavored  to  talk  to  them,  but  our  conver- 
sa  io'i  was  very  limited. 

That  evening  we  reached  our  camp,  which  was  located  two 
miles  west  of  Rively 's.  The  first  thing  I  did  was  to  hunt 
up  my  ponies,  and  from  my  father's  description  of  them,  I 
had  no  difficulty  in  finding  them.  They  were  lariated  in  the 
grass,  and  I  immediately  ran  up  to  them  supposing  them  to 
be  gentle  animals.  I  was  greatly  mistaken,  however,  as  they 
snorted  and  jumped  away  from  me,  and  wrould  not  allow 
me  to  come  near  them. 

My  father,  who  was  standing  not  far  distant,  informed  me 
that  the  ponies  were  not  yet  broken.  I  was  somewhat  dis- 
appointed at  this,  and  thereupon  he  and  one  of  his  men 


MY  PONIES.  29 

Caught  one  of  the  animals  and  bridled  her,  then  putting  me 
on  her  back,  led  her  around,  greatly  to  my  delight.  I  kept 
petting  her  so  much  that  she  soon  allowed  me  to  approach 
her.  She  was  a  beautiful  bay,  and  I  named  her  "  Dolly ; " 
the  other  pony  was  a  sorrel,  and  1  called  him  "  Prince." 

In  the  evening  some  Indians  visited  the  camp — which  as 
yet  consisted  only  of  tents,  though  some  logs  had  been  cut 
preparatory  to  building  houses — and  exchanged  their  furs 
for  clothing,  sugar  and  tobacco.  Father  had  not  learned 
their  language,  and  therefore  communicated  with  them  by 
means  of  signs.  We  had  our  supper  by  the  camp-fire,  and 
that  night  was  the  first  time  I  ever  camped  out  and  slept 
upon  the  ground. 

The  day  had  been  an  eventful  one  to  me,  for  all  the  inci- 
dents were  full  of  excitement  and  romance  to  my  youthful 
mind,  and  I  think  no  apology  is  needed  for  mentioning  so 
many  of  the  little  circumstances,  which  so  greatly  interested 
me  in  my  childhood's  days,  and  which  no  doubt  had  a  great 
influence  in  shaping  my  course  in  after  years.  My  love  of 
hunting  and  scouting,  and  life  on  the  plains  generally,  was 
the  result  of  my  early  surroundings. 

The  next  morning  father  visited  the  Ivickapoo  agency, 
taking  me  along.  He  rode  a  hoive,  and  putting  me  on  my 
pony  "Dolly,"  led  the. animal  all  the  way.  He  seemed  anx- 
ious to  break  me  in,  as  well  as  the  pony,  and  I  greatly  en- 
joyed this,  my  first  day's  ride  on  a  Kansas  prairie. 

At  the  Kickapoo  village  I  saw  hundreds  of  Indians,  some 
of  whom  were  living  in  lodges,  but  the  majority  occupied 
log  cabins.  The  agent  resided  in  a  double-hewed  log  house, 
one  of  the  apartments  of  which  was  used  as  a  school  for  the 
Indians.  The  agency  store  was  opposite  this  structure. 

All  the  buildings  were  whitewashed,  and  looked  neat  and 
clean.  The  Kickapoos  were  very  friendly  Indians,  and  we 
spent  much  of  our  time  among  them,  looking  about  and 
studying  their  habits. 

After  a  while  we  returned  to  our  own  camp,  and  just  as 


30  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

we  arrived  there,  we  saw  a  drove  of  horses — there  were 
three  or  four  hundred  in  all — approaching  from  the  west, 
over  the  California  trail.  They  were  being  driven  by  seven 
or  eight  mounted  men,  wearing  sombreros,  and  dressed  in 
buckskin,  with  their  lariats  dangling  from  their  saddles,  and 
they  were  followed  by  two  or  three  pack-mules  or  horses. 
They  went  into  camp  a  little  below  us  on  the  bank  of  the 
stream. 

Presently  one  of  the  men  walked  out  towards  our  camp, 
and  my  father  called  to  me  to  come  and  see  a  genuine  West- 
ern man ;  he  was  about  six  feet  two  inches  tall,  was  well 
built,  and  had  a  light,  springy  and  wiry  step.  He  wore 
a  broad-brimmed  California  hat,  and  was  dressed  in  a  complete 
suit  of  buckskin,  beautifully  trimmed  and  beaded.  He 
saluted  us,  and  father  invited  him  to  sit  down,  which  he  did. 
After  a  few  moments  conversation,  he  turned  to  me  and  said: 

u  Little  one,  I  see  you  are  working  with  your  ponies. 
They  are  wild  yet." 

I  had  been  petting  Dolly  and  trying  to  break  her,  when 
my  father  called  me  to  come  and  look  at  the  Californian. 

"  Yes,"  I  replied,  "  and  one  of  them  never  has  been  rid- 
den." 

"  Well,  I'll  ride  him  for  you  ; "  and  springing  lightly  to  his 
feet,  he  continued  :  "  come  on.  Where  is  the  animal  ?  " 

Accordingly  we  all  went  to  the  place  where  Prince  was 
lariated.  The  stranger  untied  the  rope  from  the  picket  pin, 
and  taking  a  half-loop  around  the  pony's  nose,  he  jumped  on 
his  back.  . 

In  a  moment  he  was  flying  over  the  prairie,  the  untamed 
steed  rearing  and  pitching  every  once  in  a  while  in  his 
efforts  to  throw  his  rider;  but  the  man  was  not  unseated. 
He  was  evidently  an  experienced  horseman.  I  watched  his 
every  movement,  i  was  unconsciously  taking  another  les- 
son in  the  practical  education  which  has  served  me  so  well 
through  my  life. 

The  Californian  rode  the  pony  until  it   was  completely 


BREAKING  IN  PRINCE. 


31 


mastered,  then    coming  up  to  me,  jumped  to  the    ground., 
handed  me  the  rope,  and  said : 

"  Here's  your  pony.     Pie's  all  right  now." 

I    led    Prince  away,  while  father  and   the  stranger   sat 
down  in   the   shade  of  a  tent,  and  began  talking  about  the' 
latter's  horsemanship,  which  father  considered  very  remark- 
able. 

"  Oh,  that's  nothing ;  I  was  raised  on  horseback,"  said  the 
Calif ornian  ;  "  I  ran  away  from  home  when  a  boy,  went  to 
sea,  and  finally  landed  in  the  Sandwich  Islajuds,  where  I  fell 


BILLINGS    AS    A   BOCARRO. 


in  with  a  circus,  with  which  I  remained  two  years.  During 
that  time  I  became  a  celebrated  bare-back  rider.  I  then 
went  to  California,  being  attracted  there  by  the  gold  excite, 
ment,  the  news  of  whicli  had  reached  the  Islands.  I  did  not 
go  to  mining,  however,  but  went  to  work  as  a  bocarro — 
catching  and  breaking  wild  horses,  great  numbers  of  which 
were  roaming  through  California.  Last  summer  we  caught 
this  herd  that  we  have  brought  with  us  across  the  plains, 


32  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

and  are  taking  it  to  the  States  to  sell.  I  came  with  the 
outfit,  as  it  gave  me  a  good  opportunity  to  visit  my  relatives, 
who  live  at  Cleveland,  Ohio.  I  also  had  an  uncle  over  at 
Weston,  across  the  river,  when  I  ran  away,  and  to-morrow  I 
am  going  to  visit  the  town  to  see  if  he  is  there  yet." 

"I  am  acquainted  in  Weston,"  said  father,  "and  perhaps 
I  can  tell  you  about  your  uncle.  What  is  his  name? " 

"  Elijah  Cody,"  said  the  California!!. 

"  Elijah  Cody  !  "  exclaimed  father,  in  great  surprise  ;  "why 
Elijah  Cody  is  my  brother.  I  am  Isaac  Cody.  Who  are 
you  ? " 

"  My  name  is  Horace  Billings,"  was  the  reply. 

"And  you  are  my  nephew.  You  are  the  son  of  my  sister 
Sophia." 

Both  men  sprang  to  their  feet  and  began  shaking  hands  in 
the  heartiest  manner  possible. 

The  next  moment  father  called  me,  and  said  :  "  Come  here, 
my  son.  Here  is  some  one  you  want  to  know." 

As  I  approached  he  introduced  us.  "Horace,  this  is  my 
only  son.  We  call  him  little  Billy  ;  "  and  turning  to  me 
said  :  "Billy,  my  boy,  this  is  a  cousin  of  yours,  Horace  Bil- 
lings, whom  you've  often  heard  me  speak  of." 

Horace  Billings  had  never  been  heard  of  from  the  day  he 
ran  away  from  home,  and  his  relatives  had  frequently  won- 
dered what  had  become  of  him.  His  appearance,  therefore, 
in  our  camp  in  the  guise  of  a  California!!  was  somewhat  of  a 
mystery  to  me,  and  1  could  hardly  comprehend  it  until  I  had 
heard  his  adventurous  story  and  learned  the  accidental  man- 
ner in  which  he  and  father  had  made  themselves  known  to 
each  other. 

Neither  father  nor  myself  would  be  satisfied  until  he  had 
given  us  a  full  account  of  his  wanderings  and  adventures, 
which  were  very  exciting  to  me. 

Late  in  the  afternoon  and  just  before  the  sun  sank  to  rest, 
the  conversation  again  turned  upon  horses  and  horseman- 
ship. Father  told  Billings  all  about  Little  Gray,  and  his 


A  DARING  RIDER. 


33 


great  fault  of   running  away.      Billings   laughed   and  said 
Little  Gray  could  not  run  away  with  him. 

After  supper  he  went  out  to  look  at  the  horse,  which  was 
picketed  in  the  grass.  Surveying  the  animal  carefully,  he 
untied  the  lariat  and  slipped  a  running  noose  over  his  nose  ; 
then  giving  a  light  bound,  he  was  on  his  back  in  a  second, 
and  away  went  the  horse  and  his  rider,  circling  round  and 
round  on  the  prairie.  Billings  managed  him  by  the  rope 
alone,  and  convinced  him  that  he  was  his  master.  When 
half  a  mile  away,  the  horse  started  for  camjp  at  the  top  of 


#*4*4fatS 

BILLINGS   RIDING   LITTLE    GRAY. 

his  speed.  Billings  stood  straight  up  on  his  back,  and  thus 
rode  him  into  camp.  As  he  passed  us  he  jumped  to  the 
ground,  allowed  the  horse  to  run  to  the  full  length  of  the 
lariat,  when  he  threw  him  a  complete  somersault. 

"  That's  a  pretty  good  horse,"  said  Billings. 

"  Yes,  he's  a  California  horse ;   he   was   captured  there 
wild,"  replied  father. 
3 


34:  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

The  exhibition  of  horsemanship  given  by  Billings  on  this 
occasion  was  really  wonderful,  and  was  the  most  skillful  and 
daring  feat  of  the  kind  that  I  ever  witnessed.  The  remain- 
der of  the  evening  was  spent  around  the  camp,  and  Horace, 
who  remained  there,  entertained  us  with  several  interesting 
chapters  of  his  experiences. 

Kext  morning  he  walked  over  to  his  own  camp,  but  soon 
returned,  mounted  on  a  beautiful  horse,  with  a  handsome 
saddle,  bridle  and  lariat.  I  thought  he  was  a  magnificent 
looking  man.  I  envied  his  appearance,  and  my  ambition 
just  then  was  to  become  as  skillful  a  horseman  as  he  was. 
lie  had  rigged  himself  out  in  his  best  style  ih  order  to  make 
a  good  impression  on  his  uncle  at  Weston,  whither  "father 
and  I  accompanied  him  on  horseback. 

He  was  cordially  received  by  Uncle  Elijah,  who  paid  him 
every  possible  attention,  and  gave  me  a  handsome  saddle  and 
bridle  for  my  pony,  and  in  the  evening  when  we  rode  out  to 
the  farm  to  see  my  mother  and  sisters,  I  started  ahead  to 
show  them  my  present,  as  well  as  to  tell  them  who  was  coin- 
ing. They  were  delighted  to  see  the  long-lost  Horace,  and 
invited  him  to  remain  with  us.  When  we  returned  to  camp 
next  day,  Horace  settled  up  with  the  proprietor  of  the 
horses,  having  concluded  to  make  his  home  with  us  for  that 
summer  at  least. 

Father  employed  him  in  cutting  house  logs  and  building 
houses,  but  this  work  not  being  adapted  to  his  tastes,  he  soon 
gave  it  up,  and  obtained  government  employment  in  catch- 
ing United  States  horses.  During  the  previous  spring  the 
government  herd  had  stampeded  from  Fort  Leavenworth, 
and  between  two  and  three  hundred  of  the  horses  were 
running  at  large  over  the  Kansas  prairies,  and  had  become 
quite  wild.  A  reward  of  ten  dollars  was  offered  for  every 
one  of  the  horses  that  was  captured  and  delivered  to  the 
quartermaster  at  Fort  Leaven  worth.  This  kind  of  work  of 
course  just  suited  the  roaming  disposition  of  Billings,  especi- 
ally as  it  was  similar  to  that  in  which  he  had  been  engaged 


LASSOING  HORSES.  37 

in  California.  The  horses  had  to  be  caught  with  a  lasso, 
with  which  he  was  very  expert.  He  borrowed  Little  Gray, 
who  was  fleet  enough  for  the  wildest  of  the  runaways,  and 
then  he  at  once  began  his  horse  hunting. 

Everything  that  he  did,  I  wanted  to  do.  He  was  a  sort  of 
hero  in  my  eyes,  and  I  wished  to  follow  in  his  footsteps.  At 
my  request  and  with  father's  consent,  he  took  me  with  him, 
and  many  a  wild  and  perilous  chase  he  led  me  over  the  prai- 
rie. I  made  rapid  advances  in  the  art  of  horsemanship,  for 
I  could  have  had  no  better  teacher  than  liorace  Billings. 
He  also  taught  me  how  to  throw  the  lasso,  which,  though 
it  was  a  difficult  thing  to  learn,  I  finally  became,  quite 
skillful  in. 

Whenever  Horace  caught  one  of  the  horses  which  acted 
obstinately,  and  would  not  be  led,  he  immediately  threw  him 
to  the  ground,  put  a  saddle  and  bridle  on  him,  and  gave  me 
Little  Gray  to  take  care  of.  He  would  then  mount  the  cap- 
tive horse  and  ride  him  into  Fort  Leaven  worth.  I  spent  two 
months  with  Horace  in  this  way,  until  at  last  no  more  of  the 
horses  were  to  be  found.  By  this  time  I  had  become  a 
remarkably  good  rider  for  a  youth,  and  had  brought  both  of 
my  ponies  under  easy  control. 

Horace  returned  to  assist  father  in  hauling  logs,  which 
were  being  used  in  building  a  dwelling  for  the  family  who 
had  moved  over  from  Missouri.  One  day  a  team  did  not 
work  to  suit  him,  and  he  gave  the  horses  a  cruel  beating. 
This  greatly  displeased  father,  who  took  him  to  task  for  it. 
Horace's  anger  flew  up  in  a  moment ;  throwing  down  the 
lines  he  hurried  to  the  house,  and  began  packing  up  his 
traps.  That  same  day  he  hired  out  to  a1  Mormon  train,  and 
bidding  us  all  good-bye  started  for  Salt  Lake,  ariving  six 
yokes  of  oxen. 


CHAPTER  III. 

BOY    DAYS    IN    KANSAS. 

DTJKING  the  summer  of  1853  we  lived  in  our  little  log 
house,  and  father  continued  to  trade  with  the  Indians, 
who  became  very  friendly  ;  hardly  a  day  passed  without  a 
social  visit  from  them.  I  spent  a  great  deal  of  time  with 
the  Indian  boys,  who  taught  me  how  to  shoot  with  the  bow 
and  arrow,  at  which  I  became  quite  expert.  I  also  took 
part  in  all  their  sports,  and  learned  to  talk  the  Kickapoo 
language  to  some  extent. 

Father  desired  to  express  his  friendship  for  these  Indians, 
and  accordingly  arranged  a  grand  barbecue  for  them.  He 
invited  them  all  to  be  present  on  a  certain  day,  which  they 
were ;  he  then  presented  them  with  two  fat  beeves,  to  be 
killed  and  cooked  in  the  various  Indian  styles.  Mother  made 
several  large  boilers  full  of  coffee,  which  she  gave  to  them, 
together  with  sugar  and  bread.  There  were  about  two  hun 
dred  Indians  in  attendance  at  the  feast,  and  they  all  enjoyed 
and  appreciated  it.  In  the  evening  they  had  one  of  their 
grand  fantastic  war  dances,  which  greatly  amused  me,  it 
boing  the  first  sight  of  the  kird  I  had  ever  witnessed. 

My  Uncle  Elijah  and  quite  a  large  number  of  gentlemen 
and  ladies  came  over  from  "Weston  to  attend  the  entertain- 
ment. The  Indians  returned  to  their  homes  well  satisfied. 

My  uncle  at  that  time  owned  a  trading  post  at  Silver  Lake, 

38 


A  DELIGHTFUL  TRIP.  39 

in  the  Pottawattamie  country,  on  the  Kansas  river,  and  he 
arranged  an  excursion  to  that  place.  Among  the  party  were 
several  ladies  from  "Weston,  and  father,  mother  and  myself. 
Mr.  McMeekan,  my  uncle's  superintendent,  who  had  come  to 
Weston  for  supplies,  conducted  the  party  to  the  post. 

The  trip  across  the  prairies  was  a  delightful  one,  and  we 
remained  at  the  post  several  days.  Father  and  one  or  two 
of  the  men  went  on  to  Fort  Riley  to  view  the  country,  and 
upon  their  return  my  uncle  entertained  the  Pottawattamie 
Indians  with  a  barbecue  similar  to  the  one  given  by  father 
to  the  Kickapoos. 

During  the  latter  part  of  the  summer  father  filled  a  hay 
contract  at  Fort  Leavenworth.  I  passed  much  of  my  time 
among  the  campers,  and  spent  days  and  days  in  riding  over 
the  country  with  Mr.  William  Russell,  who  was  engaged  in 
the  freighting  business  and  who  seemed  to  take  a  consider- 
able interest  in  me.  In  this  way  I  became  acquainted  with 
many  wagon-masters,  hunters  and  teamsters,  and  learned  a 
great  deal  about  the  business  of  handling  cattle  and  mules. 

It  was  an  excellent  school  for  me,  and  I  acquired  a  great 
deal  of  practical  knowledge,  which  afterwards  I  found  to  be 
of  invaluable  service,  for  it  was  not  long  before  I  became 
employed  by  Majors  &  Russell,  remaining  with  them  in 
different  capacities,  for  several  years. 

The  winter  of  1853-54  was  spent  by  father  at  our  little 
prairie  home  in  cutting  house  logs  and  fence  rails,  which  he 
intended  to  use  on  his  farm,  as  soon  as  the  bill  for  the  open- 
ing of  the  territory  for  settlement  should  puss.  This  bill, 
which  was  called  the  "  Enabling  act  of  Kansas  territory," 
was  passed  in  April,  1854,  and  father  immediately  pre- 
empted the  claim  on  which  we  were  living. 

The  summer  of  that  year  was  an  exciting  period  in  the 
history  of  the  new  territory.  Thousands  and  thousands  of 
people,  seeking  new  homes,  flocked  thither,  a  large  number 
of  the  emigrants  coming  over  from  adjoining  states.  The 
Missourians,  some  of  them,  would  come  laden  with  bottles 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


of  whisky,  and  after  drinking  the  liquor  would  drive  the 
bottles  into  the  ground  to  mark  their  land  claims,  not  wait- 
ing to  put  up  any  buildings. 

The  Missourians,  mostly,  were  pro-slavery  men,  and  held 
enthusiastic  meetings  at  which  they  expressed  their  desire 

that  Kansas  should  be  a  slave 
state  and  did  not  hesitate  to 
declare  their  determination 
to  make  it  so.  Eively's  store 
was  the  headquarters  for 
these  men,  and  there  they 
held  their  meetings. 

At  first  they  thought 
father  would  coincide  writh 
them  on  account  of  his 
.  brother  Elijah  being  a  Mis- 
sourian,but  in  this  they  were 
greatly  mistaken.  At  one  of 
their  gatherings,  when  there 
were  about  one  hundred  of 
the  reckless  men  present,  my 
father,  who  happened  also 
to  be  there,  was  called  upon 
for  a  speech.  After  consid- 
erable urging,  he  mounted 
the  box  and  began  speaking,  as  nearly  as  I  can  recollect,  as 
follows : 

"  Gentlemen  and  Fellow-citizens:  You  have  called  upon 
me  for  a  speech,  and  I  have  accepted  your  invitation  rather 
against  my  will,  as  my  views  may  not  accord  writh  the  senti- 
ments of  the  rest  of  this  assembly.  My  remarks,  at  this 
time,  will  be  brief  and  to  the  point.  The  question  before 
us  to-day  is,  shall  the  territory  of  Kansas  be  a  free  or  a  slave 
state.  The  question  of  slavery  in  itself  is  a  broad  one, 
and  one  which  I  do  not  care  at  this  time  and  place  to  discuss 
at  length.  I  apprehend  that  your  motive  in  calling  upon  me 


STAKING    OUT    LOTS. 


AN  INDISCREET  SPEECH.  41 

Is  to  have  me  express  my  sentiments  in  regard  to  the  intro- 
duction of  slavery  into  Kansas.  I  shall  gratify  your  wishes 
in  that  respect.  I  was  one  of  the  pioneers  of  the  State  of 
Iowa,  and  aided  in  its  settlement  when  it  was  a  territory,  and 
helped  to  organize  it  as  a  state. 

"  Gentlemen,  I  voted  that  it  should  be  a  white  state — that 
negroes,  whether  free  or  slave,  should  never  be  allowed  to 
locate  within  its  limits ;  and,  gentlemen,  I  say  to  you  now, 
and  I  say  it  boldly,  that  I  propose  to  exert  all  my  power  in 
making  Kansas  the  same  kind  of  a  state  as  Jowa.  I  believe 
in  letting  slavery  remain  as  it  now  exists,  and  I  shall  always 
oppose  its  further  extension.  These  are  my  sentiments,  gen- 
tlemen, and  let  me  tell  you — 

He  never  finished  this  sentence,  or  his  speech.  His 
expressions  were  anything  but  acceptable  to  the  rough-look- 
ing crowd,  whose  ire  had  been  gradually  rising  to  fever  heat, 
and  at  this  point  they  hooted  and  hissed  him,  and  shouted, 
46  You  black  abolitionist,  shut  up  !  "  "  Get  down  from  that 
box  !  "  "  Kill  him  !  "  "Shoot  him  !  "  and  so  on.  Father, 
however,  maintained  his  position  on  the  dry-goods  box,  not- 
withstanding the  excitement  and  the  numerous  invitations  to 
step  down,  until  a  hot-headed  pro-slavery  man,  who  was  in 
the  employ  of  my  Uncle  Elijah,  crowded  up  and  said  :  "  Get 
off  that  box,  you  black  abolitionist,  or  I'll  pull  you  off." 

Father  paid  but  little  attention  to  him,  and  attempted  to 
resume  his  speech,  intending  doubtless  to  explain  his  position 
and  endeavor  to  somewhat  pacify  the  angry  crowd.  But  the 
fellow  jumped  up  on  the  box,  and  pulling  out  a  huge  bowie 
knife,  stabbed  father  twice,  who  reeled  and  fell  to  the  ground. 
The  man  sprang  after  him,  and  would  have  ended  his  life 
then  and  there,  had  not  some  of  the  better  men  in  the  crowd 
interfered  in  time  to  prevent  him  from  carrying  out  his  mur- 
derous intention. 

The  excitement  was  intense,  and '  another  assault  would 
probably  have  been  made  on  my  father,  had  not  Rively  hur- 
riedly carried  him  to  his  home.  There  was  no  doctor  within 


42 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


any  reasonable  distance,  and  father  at  once  requested  that  he 
be  conveyed  in  the  carriage  to  his  brother  Elijah's  house  in 
Weston.  My  mother  and  a  driver  accordingly  went  there 
with  him,  where  his  wounds  were  dressed.  He  remained  in 
"Weston  several  weeks  before  he  was  able  to  stir  about  again, 
but  he  never  fully  recovered  from  the  wounds,  which  event- 
ually proved  the  cause  of  his  death. 

My  uncle  of  course  at  once  discharged  the  ruffian  from  his 


MY   FATHER   STABBED. 


employ.     The  man  afterwards  became  a  noted   desperado, 
and  was  quite  conspicuous  in  the  Kansas  war. 

My  father's  indiscreet  speech  at  Kively's  brought  upon  our 
family  all  of  the  misfortunes  and  difficulties  which  from  that 
time  on  befell  us.  As  soon  as  he  was  able  to  attend  to  his- 
business  again,  the  Missourians  began  to  harass  him  in  every 
possible  way,  and  kept  it  up  with  hardly  a  moment's  cessa- 
tion. Kickapoo  City,  as  it  was  called,  a  small  town  that  had 


MY  FATHER  DRIVEN  FROM  HOME.  4.3 

sprung  into  existence  seven  miles  up  the  river  from  Fort 
Leavenworth,  became  the  hot-bed  of  the  pro-slavery  doctrine 
and  the  headquarters  of  its  advocates.  Here  was  really  the 
beginning  of  the  Kansas  troubles.  My  father,  who  had 
shed  the  first  blood  in  the  cause  of  the  freedom  of  Kansas, 
was  notified,  upon  his  return  to  his  trading  post,  to  leave  the 
territory,  and  he  was  threatened  with  death  by  hanging  or 
shooting,  if  he  dared  to  remain. 

One  night  a  body  of  armed  men,  mounted  on  horses,  rode 


MY  FATHER'S  ESCAPE. 

up  to  our  house  and  surrounded  it.  Knowing  what  they 
had  come  for,  and  seeing  that  there  would  be  but  little 
chance  for  him  in  .an  encounter  with  them,  father  determined 
to  make  his  escape  by  a  little  stratagem.  Hastily  disguising- 
himself  in  mother's  bonnet  and  shawl,  he  boldly  walked  out 
of  the  house  and  proceeded  towards  the  corn-field.  The 
darkness  proved  a  great  protection,  as  the  horsemen,  between 
whom  he  passed,  were  unable  to  detect  him  in  his  disguise; 


44  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

supposing  him  to  be  a  woman,  they  neither  halted  him  nor 
followed  him,  and  he  passed  safely  on  into  the  corn-field, 
where  he  concealed  himself. 

The  horsemen  soon  dismounted  and  inquired  for  father  ; 
mother  very  truthfully  told  them  that  he  was  away.  They 
were  not  satisfied  with  her  statement,  however,  and  they  at 
once  made  a  thorough  search  of  the  house.  They  raved  and 
swore  when  they  could  not  find  him,  and  threatened  him 
with  death  whenever  they  should  catch  him.  I  am  sure  if 
they  had  captured  him  that  night,  they  would  have  killed 
him.  They  carried  off  nearly  everything  of  value  in  the 
house  and  about  the  premises;  then  going  to  the  pasture, 
they  drove  off  all  the  horses ;  my  pony  Prince  afterward 
succeeding  in  breaking  away  from  them  and  came  back 
home.  Father  lay  secreted  in  the  corn-field  for  three  days, 
as  there  were  men  in  the  vicinity  who  were  watching  for 
him  all  the  time ;  he  finally  made  his  escape,  and  reached 
Fort  Leavenworth  in  safety,  whither  the  pro-slavery  men  did 
not  dare  to  follow  him. 

While  he  was  staying  at  Fort  Leavenworth,  he  heard  that 
Jim  Lane,  Captain  Cleveland  and  Captain  Chandler  were  on 
their  way  from  Indiana  to  Kansas  with  a  body  of  Free  State 
men,  between  two  and  three  hundred  strong.  They  were  to 
cross  the  Missouri  river  near  Doniphan,  between  Leaven- 
worth and  Nebraska  City  ;  their  destination  being  Lawrence. 
Father  determined  to  join  them,  and  took  passage  on  a  steam- 
boat which  was  going  up  the  river.  Having  reached  the 
place  of  crossing,  he  made  himself  known  to  the  leaders  of 
the  party,  by  whom  he  was  most  cordially  received. 

The  pro-slavery  men,  hearing  of  the  approach  of  the  Free 
State  party,  resolved  to  drive  them  out  of  the  territory.  The 
two  parties  met  at  Hickory  Point,  where  a  severe  battle  was 
fought,  several  being  killed  ;  the  victory  resulted  in  favor  of 
the  Free  State  men,  who  passed  on  to  Lawrence  without  much 
further  opposition.  My  father  finally  left  them,  and  seeing 
that  he  could  no  longer  live  at  home,  went  to  Grasshopper 


A  HOT  PURSUIT 


Falls,  thirty-five  miles  west  of  Leavenwortli ;  there  he  began 
the  erection  of  a  saw-mill. 

While  he  was  thus  engaged  we  learned  from  one  of  our 
hired  workmen  at  home,  that  the  pro-slavery  men  had  laid 
another  plan  to  kill  him,  and  were  on  their  way  to  Grass- 
hopper Falls  to  carry  out  their  intention.  Mother  at  once 


started  me  o  ff  on 
Prince  to  warn  father 
of  the  coming  danger. 
When  I  had  gone 
about  seven  miles  I 
suddenly  came  upon  a 
party  of  men,  w  h  o 
were  camped  at  the 
crossing  of  Stranger 
Creek.  As  I  passed  along  I  heard  one  of  them,  who  recog- 
nized me,  say,  "  That's  the  son  of  the  old  abolitionist  we  are 
after; "  and  the  next  moment  I  was  commanded  to  halt. 

Instead  of  stopping  I  instantly  started  my  pony  on  a  run, 
and  on  looking  back  I  saw  that  I  was  being  pursued  by  three 
or  four  of  the  party,  who  had  mounted  their  horses,  no 
doubt  supposing  that  they  could  easily  capture  me.  It  was 


LIFE    OR   DEATH. 


46  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

very  fortunate  that  I  had  heard  the  remark  about  my  being 
"  the  son  of  the  abolitionist,"  for  then  I  knew  in  an  instant 
,  that  they  were  en  route  to  Grasshopper  Falls  to  murder  rny 
father.  I  at  once  saw  the  importance  of  my  escaping  and 
warning  father  in  time.  It  was  a  matter  of  life  or  death  to 
him.  So  I  urged  Prince  to  his  utmost  speed,  feeling  that 
upon  him  and  myself  depended  a  human  life — a  life  that 
was  dearer  to  me  than  that  of  any  other  man  in  the  world. 
I  led  my  pursuers  a  lively  chase  for  four  or  five  miles ; 
finally,  when  they  saw  they  could  not  catch  me,  they  re- 
turned to  their  camp.  I  kept  straight  on  to  Grasshopper 
Falls,  arriving  there  in  ample  tiaie  to  inform  him  of  the 
approach  of  his  old  enemies. 

That  same  night  father  and  I  rode  to  Lawrence,  which  had 
become  the  headquarters  of  the  Free  State  men.  There  he 
met  Jim  Lane  and  several  other  leading  characters,  who  were 
then  organizing  what  was  known  as  the  Lecompton  Legisla- 
ture. 

Father  was  elected  as  a  member  of  that  body,  and  took  an 
active  part  in  organizing  the  first  legislature  of  Kansas, 
under  Governor  Reeder,  who,  by  the  way,  was  a  Free  State 
man  and  a  great  friend  of  father's. 

About  this  time  agents  were  being  sent  to  the  East  to 
induce  emigrants  to  locate  in  Kansas,  and  father  was  sent  as 
one  of  these  agents  to  Ohio.  After  the  legislature  had  been 
organized  at  Lawrence,  he  departed  for  Ohio  and  was  absent 
several  months. 

A  few  days  after  he  had  gone,  I  started  for  home  by  the 
way  of  Fort  Leavenworth,  accompanied  by  two  men,  who 
were  going  to  the  fort  on  business.  As  we  were  crossing  a 
,  stream  called  Little  Stranger,  we  were  fired  upon  by  some 
unknown  party;  one  of  my  companions,  whose  name  has 
escaped  my  memory,  was  killed.  The  other  man  and  myself 
put  spurs  to  our  horses  and  made  a  dash  for  our  lives.  We 
succeeded  in  making  our  escape,  though  a  farewell  shot  or 
two  was  sent  after  us.  At  Fort  Leavenworth  I  parted  com- 


OUR  HOME  IS  KEPT.  4.7 

pany  with  my  companion,  and  reached  home  without  any 
further  adventure. 

My  mother  and  sisters,  who  had  not  heard  of  my  father 
or  myself  since  I  had  been  sent  to  warn  him  of  his  danger, 
had  become  very  anxious  and  uneasy  about  us,  and  were 
uncertain  as  to  whether  we  were  dead  or  alive.  I  received  a 
warm  welcome  home,  and  as  I  entered  the  house,  mother 
seemed  to  read  from  the  expression  of  my  countenance  that 
father  was  safe ;  of  course  the  very  first  question  she  asked 
was  as  to  his  whereabouts,  and  in  reply  I  handed  her  a  long 
letter  from  him  which  explained  everything.  Mother  blessed 
me  again  and  again  for  having  saved  his  life. 

While  father  was  absent  in  Ohio,  we  were  almost  daily 
visited  by  some  of  the  pro-slavery  men,  who  helped  them- 
selves to  anything  they  saw  fit,  and  frequently  compelled  my  • 
mother  and  sisters  to  cook  for  them,  and  to  otherwise  submit 
to  a  great  deal  of  bad  treatment.  Hardly  a  day  passed  with- 
out some  of  them  inquiring  "  where  the  old  man  was,"  say- 
ing they  would  kill  him  on  sight.  Thus  we  passed  the  sum- 
mer of  1854,'remaining  at  our  home  notwithstanding  the 
unpleasant  surroundings,  as  mother  had  made  up  her  mind 
not  to  be  driven  out  of  the  country.  My  uncle  and  other 
friends  advised  her  to  leave  Kansas  and  move  to  Missouri, 
because  they  did  not  consider  our  lives  safe,  as  we  lived  so 
near  the  headquarters  of  the  pro-slavery  men,  who  had 
sworn  vengeance  upon  father. 

Nothing,  however,  could  persuade  mother  to  change  her 
determination.  She  said  that  the  pro-slavery  men  had  taken 
everything  except  the  land  and  the  little  home,  and  she  pro- 
posed to  remain  there  as  long  as  she  lived,  happen  what 
might.  Our  only  friends  in  Salt  Creek  valley  were  two 
families  ;  one  named  Lawrence,  the  other  Hathaway,  and  the 
peaceable  Indians,  who  occasionally  visited  us.  My  uncle, 
living  in  Missouri  and  being  somewhat  in  fear  of  the  pro- 
slavery  men,  could  not  assist  us  much,  beyond  expressing  his 
sympathy  and  sending  us  provisions. 


48  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

In  the  winter  of  1854-55  father  returned  from  Ohio,  but 
as  soon  as  his  old  enemies  learned  that  he  was  with  us,  they 
again  compelled  him  to  leave.  He  proceeded  to  Lawrence, 
and  there  spent  the  winter  in  attending  the  Lecompton  Legis- 
lature. The  remainder  of  the  year  he  passed  mostly  at 
Grasshopper  Falls,  where  he  completed  his  saw -mill.  He 
occasionally  visited  home  under  cover  of  v  the  night,  and  in 
the  most  secret  manner;  virtually  carrying  his  life  in  his 
hand. 

In  the  spring  of  this  year  (1855)  a  pro-slavery  party  came 
to  our  house  to  search  for  father;  not  Ending  him,  they  de- 
parted, taking  with  them  my  pony,  Prince.  I  shall  never 
forget -the  man  who  stole  that  pony.  He  afterwards  rose 
from  the  low  level  of  a  horse  thief  to  the  high  dignity  of  a 
justice  of  the  peace,  and  I  think  still  lives  at  Kickapoo.  The 
loss  of  my  faithful  pony  nearly  broke  my  heart  and  bank- 
rupted me  in  business,  as  I  had  nothing  to  ride. 

One  day,  soon  afterwards,  I  met  my  old  friend,  Mr.  Rus- 
sell, to  whom  I  related  all  my  troubles,  and  his  generous 
heart  was  touched  by  my  story.  "  Billy,  my  boy,"  said  he, 
"cheer  up,  and  come  to  Leavenworth,  and  I'll  employ  you. 
I'll  give  you  twenty-five  dollars  a  month  to  herd  cattle." 

I  accepted  the  offer,  and  heartily  thanking  him,  hurried 
home  to  obtain  mother's  consent. .  She  refused  to  let  me  go, 
and  all  my  pleading  was  in  vain.  Young  as  I  was — being 
then  only  in  my  tenth  year,  my  ideas  and  knowledge  of  the 
world,  however,  being  far  in  advance  of  my  age— I  deter- 
mined to  run  away  from  home.  Mr.  Russell's  offer  of  twen- 
ty-five dollars  a  month  'was  a  temptation  which  I  could  not 
resist.  The  remuneration  for  my  services  seemed  very  large 
to  me,  and  I  accordingly  stole  away  and  walked  to  Leaven- 
worth. 

Mr.  Badger,  one  of  Mr.  Russell's  superintendents,  imme- 
diately sent  me  out,  mounted  on  a  little  gray  mule,  to  herd 
cattle.  I  worked  at  this  for  twro  months,  and  then  came  into 
Leavenworth.  I  had  not  been  home  during  all  this  time,  but 


MY  FIRST  EARNINGS.  4.$ 

mother  had  learned  from  Mr.  Russell  where  I  was,  and  she 
no  longer  felt  uneasy,  as  he  had  advised  her  to  let  me  remain 
in  his  employ.  He  assured  her  that  I  was  all  right,  and  said 
that  when  the  herd  came  in  he  would  allow  me  to  make  a 
visit  home. 

Upon  my  arrival  in  Leavenworth  with  the  herd  of  cattle,, 
Mr.  Russell  instructed  his  book-keeper,  Mr.  Byers,  to  pay  me 
my  wages,  amounting  to  fifty  dollars.  Byers  gave  me  "the 
sum  all  in  half-dollar  pieces.  I  put  the  bright  silver  coins* 
into  a  sack,  which  I  tied  to  my  mule,  anc^  started  home,, 
thinking  myself  a  millionaire.  This  money  I  gave  to 
mother,  who  had  already  forgiven  me  for  running  away. 

Thus  began  my  service  for  the  firm  of  Russell  &  Majors, 
afterwards  Russell,  Majors  &  Waddell,  with  whom  I  spent 
eeven  years  of  my  life  in  different  capacities — such  as  caval- 
lard-driver,  wagon-master,  pony  express  rider  and  driver.  I 
continued  to  work  for  Mr.  Russell  during  the  rest  of  the 
summer  of  1855,  and  in  the  winter  of  1855-56  I  attended 
school. 

Father,  who  still  continued  to  secretly  visit  home,  was  anx- 
ious to  have  his  children  receive  as  much  of  an  education  as- 
possible,  under  the  adverse  circumstances  surrounding  us,  and 
he  employed  a  teacher,  Miss  Jennie  Lyons,  to  come  to  our 
house  and  teach.  My  mother  was  well  educated — more  so- 
than  my  father — and  it  used  to  worry  her  a  great  deal 
because  her  children  could  not  receive  better  educational 
advantages.  However,  the  little  school  at  home  got  along 
exceedingly  well,  and  we  all  made  rapid  advances  in  our 
studies,  as  Miss  Lyons  was  an  excellent  teacher.  She  after- 
wards married  a  gentleman  named  Hook,  who  became  the 
first  mayor  of  Cheyenne,  where  she  now  lives. 

The  Kansas  troubles  reached  their  highest  pitch  in  the 
spring  of  1856,  and  our  family  continued  to  be  harassed  as 
much  as  ever  by  our  old  enemies.  I  cannot  now  recol- 
lect one-half  of  the  serious  difficulties  that  we  had  to 
encounter  ;  but  I  very  distinctly  remember  one  incident  well 


50  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

worth  relating.  I  came  home  one  night  on  a  visit  from 
Leavenworth,  being  accompanied  by  a  fellow-herder — a 
joung  man.  During  the  night  we  heard  a  noise  outside  of 
the  house,  and  soon  the  dogs  began  barking  loudly.  We 
looked  out  to  ascertain  the  cause  of  the  disturbance,  and  saw 
that  the  house  was  surrounded  by  a  party  of  men.  Mother 
had  become  accustomed  to  such  occurrences,  and  on  this 
occasion  she  seemed  to  be  master  of  the  situation  from  the 
start.  Opening  a  window,  she  coolly  sang  out,  in  a  firm 
tone  of  voice  :  "  Who  are  you  ?  What  do  you  want  here  ? " 

"  We  are  after  that  old  abolition  husband  of  yours,"  was 
the  answer  from  one  of  the  crowd. 

"  He  is  not  in  this  house,  and  has  not  been  here  for  a  long 
time,"  said  my  mother. 

"  That's  a  lie  !  We  know  he  is  in  the  house,  and  we  are 
bound  to  have  him,"  said  the  spokesman  of  the  party. 

I  afterwards  learned  they  had  mistaken  the  herder,  who 
had  ridden  home  with  me,  for  my  father  for  whom  they  had 
been  watching. 

"My  husband  is  not  at  home,"  emphatically  repeated  my 
heroic  mother — for  if  there  ever  was  a  heroine  she  certainly 
was  one — "  but  the  house  is  full  of  armed  men,"  continued 
she,  "and  I'll  give  you  just  two  minutes  to  get  out  of  the 
yard  ;  if  you  are  not  out  by  the  end  of  that  time  I  shall  order 
them  to  fire  on  you." 

She  withdrew  from  the  window  for  a  few  moments  and 
hurridly  instructed  the  herder  to  call  aloud  certain  names — 
any  that  he  might  think  of — just  as  if  the  house  was  full  of 
men  to  whom  he  was  giving  orders.  He  followed  her  di- 
rections to  the  very  letter.  He  could  not  have  done  it  any 
better  had  he  rehearsed  the  act  a  dozen  times. 

The  party  outside  heard  him,  as  it  was  intended  they 
should,  and  they  supposed  that  my  mother  really  had  quite 
a  force  at  her  command.  While  this  little  by  play  was  being 
enacted,  she  stepped  to  the  open  window  again  and  said  : 

"  John  Green,  you  and  your  friends  had  better  go  away  or 
the  men  will  surely  fire  on  you." 


MY  MOTHER'S  BRAVERY.  51 

At  this  point  the  herder,  myself  and  my  sisters  commenc- 
ed stamping  on  the  floor  in  imitation  of  a  squad  of  soldiers, 
and  the  herder  issued  his  orders  in  a  lond  voice  to  his  imag- 
inary troops,  who  were  apparently  approaching  the  window 
preparatory  to  firing  a  volley  at  the  enemy.  This  little 
stratagem  proved  eminently  successful.  The  cowardly 
villains  began  retreating,  and  then  my  mother  fired  an  old 
gun  into  the  air  which  greatly  accelerated  their  speed,  caus- 
ing them  to  break  and  run.  They  soon  disappeared  from 
view  in  the  darkness.  * 

The  next  morning  we  accidentally  discovered  that  they 
had  intended  to  blow  up  the  house.  Upon  going  into  the 
cellar  which  had  been  left  open  on  one  side,  we  found  two 
kegs  of  powder  together  with  a  fuse  secreted  there.  It  only 
required  a  lighted  match  to  have  sent  us  into  eternity.  My 
mother's  presence  of  mind,  which  had  never  yet  deserted 
her  in  any  trying  situation,  had  saved  our  lives. 

Shortly  after  this  affair,  I  came  home  again  on  a  visit  and 
found  father  there  sick  with  fever  and  confined  to  his  bed. 
One  day  my  old  enemy  rode  up  to  the  house  on  my  pony 
Prince,  which  he  had  stolen  from  me. 

"  What  is  your  business  here  to-day  ? "  asked  mother. 
"I  am  looking  for  the  old  man,"  he  replied.  "I.  am  going 
to  search  the  house,  and  if  I  rind  him  I  am  going  to  kill 
him.  Here,  you  girls,"  said  he,  addressing  my  sisters,  u  get 
me  some  dinner,  and  get  it  quick,  too,  for  I  am  as  hungry  as 
a  wolf." 

"  Yery  well ;  pray  be  seated,  and  we'll  get  you  something 
to  eat,"  said  one  of  my  sisters,  without  exhibiting  the  least 
sign  of  fear. 

He  sat  down,  and  while  they  were  preparing  a  dinner  for 
him,  he  took  out  a  big  knife  and  sharpened  it  on  a  whet- 
stone, repeating  his  threat  of  searching  the  house  and  killing 
my  father. 

I  had   witnessed   the   whole   proceeding,  and   heard   the 
threats,  and  I  determined  that  the  man  should  never  go  up 
4 


52  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

stairs  where  father  was  lying  in  bed,  unable  to  rise.  Taking  a 
double-barreled  pistol  which  I  had  recently  bought,  1  went 
to  the  head  of  the  stairs,  cocked  the  weapon,  and  waited  for 
the  ruffian  to  come  up,  determined,  that  the  moment  he  set 
foot  on  the  steps  I  would  kill  him.  I  was  relieved,  however, 
from  the  stern  necessity,  as  he  did  not  make  his  appearance. 

The  brute  was  considerably  intoxicated  when  he  came  to  the 
house,  and  the  longer  he  sat  still  the  more  his  brain  became 
muddled  with  liquor,  and  he  actually  forgot  what  he  had 
come  there  for.  After  he  had  eaten  his  dinner,  he  mounted 
his  horse  and  rode  off,  and  it  was  a  fortunate  thing  for  him 
that  he  did. 

Father  soon  recovered  and  returned  to  Grasshopper  Falls^ 
while  I  resumed  my  cattle  herding.  t 


CHAPTER  IV. 

YOUTHFUL     EXPERIENCES. 

IN  July,  1856,  the  people  living  in  the  vicinity  of  our  home 
—feeling  the  necessity  of  more  extensive  educational 
facilities  for  their  children  than  they  had  yeu  had — started  a 
subscription  school  in  a  little  log  cabin  on  the  bank  of  the 
creek,  which  for  a  while  proved  quite  a  cuccess.  My  mother 
being  very  anxious  to  have  me  attend  this  school,  I  acceded 
to  her  oft-repeated  wishes,  and  returning  home,  I  became  a 
a  pupil  of  the  institution.  I  made  considerable  progress  in 
my  studies — such  as  they  were — and  was  getting  along  very 
well  in  every  other  respect,  until  I  became  involved  in  my 
first  love  affair. 

Like  all  school-boys,  I  had  a  sweetheart  with  whom  I  was 
"dead  in  love" — in  a  juvenile  way.  Her  name  was  Mary 
Hyatt.  Of  course  I  had  a  rival,  Stephen  GobeJ,  a  boy 
about  three  years  my  senior — the  c*  bully  "  of  the  school. 
He  was  terribly  jealous,  and  sought  in  every  way  to  revenge 
himself  upon  me  for  having  won  the  childish  affections  of 
sweet  little  Mary. 

The  boys  of  the  school  used  to  build  play-houses  or  arbors 
among  the  trees  and  bushes  for  their  sweethearts.  I  had 
built  a  play-house  for  Mary,  when  Steve,  as  we  called  him, 
leveled  it  to  the  ground.  We  immediately  had  a  very  lively 
fight,  in  which  I  got  badly  beaten.  The  teacher  heard  of  our 

53 


54: 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


quarrel  and  whipped  us  both.  This  made  matters  worse 
than  ever,  as  I  had  received  two  thrashings  to  Steve's 
one ;  I  smothered  my  angry  feelings  as  much  as  possible 
under  the  humiliating  circumstances,  and  during  the  after- 
noon recess  built  another  play-house,  thinking  that  Gobel 
would  not  dare  to  destroy  a  second  one;  but  I  was  mis- 
taken, for  he  pushed  the  whole  structure  over  at  the  first 
opportunity.  I  came  up  to  him  just  as  he  finished  the  job, 

and  said  : 

"  S  t  e  v  e  Gobel,  the 
next  time  you  do  that, 
I'll  hurt  you."  And  I 
meant  it,  too;  but  he 
laughed  and  called  me 
names. 

At  recess,  next  morn- 
ing, I  began  the  construc- 
tion of  still  another  play- 
house, and  when  I  had  it 
about  two-thirds  finished, 
Steve  slyly  sneaked  up  to 
the  spot  and  tipped  the 
whole  thing  over.  I 
jumped  for  him  with  the 
quickness  of  a  cat,  and 
clutching  him  by  the 
throat  for  a  moment  I  had 
TWO  TO  ONE.  the  advantage  of  him. 

But  he  was  too  strong  for  me,  and  soon  had  me  on  the  ground 
and  was  beating  me  severely.  While  away  from  home  I  had 
someway  come  into  possession  of  a  very  small  pocket  dagger, 
which  I  had  carried  about  with  me  in  its  sheath,  using  it  in 
place  of  a  knife.  During  the  struggle  this  fell  from  my 
pocket,  and  my  hand  by  accident  rested  upon  it  as  it  lay  upon 
the  ground.  Exasperated  beyond  measure  at -Steve's  persis- 
tence in  destroying  my  play-houses,  and  smarting  under  his 


A  LOVE  AFFAIR. 


55 


blows,  I  forgot  myself  for  the  moment,  grasped  the  dagger 
and  unthinkingly  thrust  it  into  Steve's  thigh.  Had  it  been 
larger  it  would  probably  have  injured  him  severely  ;  as  it 
was,  it  made  a  small  wound,  sufficient  to  cause  the  blood  to 
flow  freely  and  Steve  to  cry  out  in  affright : 

"  I  am  killed  !  O,  I  am  killed !  " 

The  school  children  all  rushed  to  the  spot  and  were  terri- 
fied at  the  scene. 

"  What's  the  matter  ? "  asked  one. 

"  Bill  Cody  has  killed  Steve  Gobel,"  replied*another. 

The  uproar  reached  the  teacher's  ear,  and  I  now  saw  him 
approaching,  with  vengeance  in  his  eye  and  a  big  club  in  his 
hand.  I  knew  that  he  was  coming  to  interview  me.  I  was 
dreadfully  frightened  at  what  I  had  done ,  and  undecided 
whether  to  run  away  or  to  remain  and  take  the  conse- 
quences; but  the  sight  of  that  flag-staff  in  the  school 
teacher's  hand  was  too  much  forme.  I  no  longer  hesitated, 
but  started  off  like  a  deer.  The  teacher  followed  in  hot 
pursuit,  but  soon  became  convinced  that  he  could  not  catch 
me,  and  gave  up  the  chase.  I  kept  on  running,  until  I 
reached  one  of  Russell,  Major  &  Waddell's  freight  trains 
which  I  had  noticed  going  over  the  hill  for  the  west. 
Fortunately  for  me  I  knew  the  wagon-master,  John  "Willis, 
and  as  soon  as  I  recovered  my  breath  I  told  him  what  had 
happened. 

"  Served  him  right,  Billy,"  said  he,  "  and  what's  more, 
we'll  go  over  and  clean  out  the  teacher." 

"  Oh,  no  ;  don't  do  that,"  said  I,  for  I  was  afraid  that  I 
might  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  wounded  boy's  friends,  who 
I  knew  would  soon  be  looking  for  me. 

"Well,  Billy,  come  along  with  me  ;  I  am  bound  for  Fort 
Kearney  ;  the  trip  will  take  me  forty  days.  I  want  you  for 
a  cavallard  driver." 

"  All  right,"  I  replied,  "  but  I  must  go  home  and  tell 
mother  about  it,  and  get  some  clothes." 

"  Well  then,  to-night  after  we  make  our  camp,  I'll  go 
back  with  you." 


56  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

The  affray  broke  up  the  school  for  the  rest  of  the  day  as 
the  excitement  was  too  much  for  the  children.  Late  in  the 
afternoon,  after  the  train  had  moved  on  some  consider- 
able distance,  I  saw  Steve's  father,  his  brother  Frank,  and 
one  of  the  neighbors  rapidly  approaching. 

"  Mr.  Willis,  there  comes  old  Gobel,  with  Frank  and  some- 
body else,  and  they  are  after  me — what  am  I  going  to  do  ? " 
I  asked. 

"  Let  'em  come,"  said  he,  "  they  can't  take  you  if  I've  got 
anything  to  say  about  it,  and  I  rather  think  I  have.  Get 
into  one  of  the  wagons — keep  quiet  and  lay  low.  I'll  man- 
age this  little  job.  Don't  you  fret  a  bit  about  it." 

1  obeyed  his  orders  and  felt  much  easier. 

Old  Gobel,  Frank  and  the  neighbor  soon  came  up  and 
inquired  for  me. 

"  He's  around  here  somewhere,"  said  Mr.  "Willis. 

"  We  want  him,"  said  Gobel ;  "  he  stabbed  my  son  a  little 
while  ago,  and  I  want  to  arrest  him." 

"  Well,  you  can't  get  him  ;  that  settles  it ;  so  you  needn't 
waste  any  of  your  time  around  here,"  said  Willis. 

Gobel  continued  to  talk  for  a  few  minutes,  but  getting  no 
greater  satisfaction,  the  trio  returned  home. 

When  night  came,  Willis  accompanied  me  on  horseback  to 
my  home.  Mother,  who  had  anxiously  searched  for  me 
everywhere — being  afraid  that  something  had  befallen  me  at 
the  hands  of  the  Gobels — was  delighted  to  see  me,  notwith- 
standing the  difficulty  in  which  1  had  become  involved.  I 
at  once  told  her  that  at  present  I  was  afraid  to  remain  at 
home,  and  had  accordingly  made  up  my  mind  to  absent 
myself  for  a  few  weeks  or  months — at  least  until  the  excite- 
ment should  die  out.  Mr.  Willis  said  to  her  that  he  would 
take  me  to  Fort  Kearney  with  him,  and  see  that  1  was  prop- 
erly cared  for,  and  would  bring  me  back  safely  in  forty  days. 

Mother  at  first  periously  objected  to  my  going  on  this  trip 
fearing  I  would  fall  into  the  hands  of  Indians.  Her  fears, 
however,  were  soon  overcome,  and  she  concluded  to  let  me 


STEVE  AND  I  ARE  FRIENDS  AGAIN.  57 

go.  She  fixed  me  up  a  big  bundle  of  clothing  and  gave  me 
a  quilt.  Kissing  her  and  rny  sisters  a  fond  farewell,  I 
started  off  on  my  first  trip  across  the  plains,  and  with  a 
light  heart  too,  notwithstanding  my  trouble  of  a  few  hours 
before. 

The  trip  proved  a  most  enjoyable  one  to  me,  although  no 
incidents  worthy  of  note  occurred  on  the  way.  On  my 
return  from  Fort  Kearney  I  was  paid  off  the  same  as  the 
rest  of  the  employees.  The  remainder  of  the  summer  and 
fall  I  spent  in  herding  cattle  and  working  for  Russell, 
Majors  &  Waddell. 

I  finally  ventured  home — not  without  some  fear,  however, 
of  the  Gobel  family — and  was  delighted  to  learn  that  dur- 
ing my  absence  mother  had  had  an  interview  with  Mr. 
Gobel,  and  having  settled  the  difficulty  with  him,  the  two 
families  had  become  friends  again,  and  I  may  state,  inciden- 
tally, that  they  ever  after  remained  so.  I  have  since  often  met 
Stephen  Gobel,  and  we  have  had  many  a  laugh  together  over 
our  love  affair  and  the  affray  at  the  school-house.  Mary 
Hyatt,  the  innocent  cause  of  the  whole  difficulty,  is  now 
married  and  living  in  Chicago.  Thus  ended  my  first  love 
scr  ipe. 

In  the  winter  of  1856—57  my  father,  in  company  with  a 
man  named  J.  0.  Boles,  went  to  Cleveland,  Ohio,  and  organ- 
ized a  colony  of  about  thirty  families,  whom  they  brought 
to  Kansas  and  located  on  the  Grasshopper.  Several  of  these 
families  still  reside  there. 

It  was  during  this  winter  that  father,  after  his  return  from 
Cleveland,  caught  a  severe  cold.  This,  in  connection  with 
the  wound  he  had  received  at  Rively's — from  which  he  had 
never  entirely  recovered — affected  him  seriously,  and  in 
April,  1857,  he  died  at  home  from  kidney  disease. 

This  sad  event  left  my  mother  and  the  family  in  poor  cir- 
cumstances, and  I  determined  to  follow  the  plains  for  a  live- 
lihood for  them  and  myself.  I  had  no  difficulty  in  obtaining 
work  under  my  old  employers,  and  in  May,  1857,  I  started 


58  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

for  Salt  Lake  City  with  a  herd  of  beef  cattle,  in  charge  of 
Frank  and  Bill  McCarthy,  for  General  Albert  Sidney  John- 
son's army,  which  was  then  being  sent  across  the  plains  to 
fight  the  Mormons. 

Nothing  occurred  to  interrupt  our  journey  until  we 
reached  Plum  Creek,  on  the  South  Platte  river,  thirty-five 
miles  west  of  Old  Fort  Kearney.  We  had  made  a  morning 
drive  and  had  camped  for  dinner.  The  wagon-masters  and 
a  majority  of  the  men  had  gone  to  sleep  under  the  mess 
wagons ;  the  cattle  were  being  guarded  by  three  men,  and 
the  cook  was  preparing  dinner.  No  one  had  any  idea  that 
Indians  were  anywhere  near  us.  The  first  warning  we 
had  that  they  were  infesting  that  part  of  the  country  was 
the  firing  of  shots  and  the  whoops  and  yells  from  a  party  of 
them,  who,  catching  us  napping,  gave  us  a  most  unwelcome 
surprise.  All  the  men  jumped  to  their  feet  and  seized  their 
guns.  They  saw  with  astonishment  the  cattle  running  in 
every  direction,  they  having  been  stampeded  by  the  Indians, 
who  had  shot  and  killed  the  three  men  who  were  on  day- 
herd  duty,  and  the  red  devils  were  now  charging  down  upon 
the  rest  of  us. 

I  then  thought  of  mother's  fears  of  my  falling  into  the 
hands  of  the  Indians,  and  I  had  about  made  up  my  mind 
that  such  was  to  be  my  fate ;  but  when  I  saw  how  coolly  and 
determinedly  the  McCarthy  brothers  were  conducting  them-x 
selves  and  giving  orders  to  the  little  band,  I  became  con- 
vinced that  we  would  "  stand  the  Indians  off,''  {is  the  saying 
is.  Our  men  were  all  well  armed  with  Colt's  revolvers  and 
Mississippi  yagers,  which  last,  carried  a  bullet,  and  two  buck- 
shots. 

The  McCarthy  boys,  at  the  proper  moment,  gave  orders 
to  fire  upon  the  advancing  enemy.  The  volley  checked 
them,  although  they  returned  the  compliment,  arid  shot  one 
of  our  party  through  the  leg.  Frank  McCarthy  then  sang 
out,  "  Boys,  make  a  break  for  the  slough  yonder,  and  we 
can  then  have  the  bank  for  a  breast-work." 


KILLING  MY  FIRST  INDIAN. 


I  KILL  MY  FIRST  INDIAN.  g^ 

"We  made  a  run  for  the  slough  which  was  only  a  short  dis- 
tance off,  and  succeeded  in  safely  reaching  it,  bringing  with 
us  the  wounded  man.  The  bank  proved  to  be  a  very  effec- 
tive breast-work,  affording  us  good  protection.  We  had 
been  there  but  a  short  time  when  Frank  McCarthy,  seeing 
that  the  longer  we  were  corraled  the  worse  it  would  be  for 
us,  said : 

"  Well,  boys,  we'll  try  to  make  our  way  back  to  Fort 
Kearney  by  wading  in  the  river  and  keeping  the  bank  for  a 
breast- work."  v 

We  all  agreed  that  this  was  the  best  plan,  and  we  accord- 
ingly proceeded  down  the  river  several  miles  in  this  way, 
managing  to  keep  the  Indians  at  a  safe  distance  with  our 
guns,  until  the  slough  made  a  junction  with  the  main  Platte 
river.  From  there  down  we  found  the  river  at  times  quite 
deep,  and  in  order  to  carry  the  wounded  man  along  with  us,, 
we  constructed  a  raft  of  poles  for  his  accommodation,  and 
in  this  way  he  was  transported. 

Occasionally  the  water  would  be  too  deep  for  us  to  wader 
and  we  were  obliged  to  put  our  weapons  on  the  raft  arid 
swim.  The  Indians  followed  us  pretty  close,  and  were  con- 
tinually watching  for  an  opportunity  to  get  a  good  range  and 
give  us  a  raking  fire.  Covering  ourselves  by  keeping  well 
under  the  bank,  we  pushed  ahead  as  rapidly  as  possible,  and 
made  pretty  good  progress,  the  night  finding  us  still  on  the 
way  and  our  enemies  still  on  our  track. 

I  beinor  the  youngest  and  smallest  of  the  party,  became 
somewhat  tired,  and  without  noticing  it  I  had  fallen  behind 
the  others  for  some  little  distance.  It  was  about  ten  o'clock 
and  we  were  keeping  very  quiet  and  hugging  close  to  the 
bank,  when  I  happened  to  look  up  to  the  moon-lit  sky  and 
saw  the  plumed  head  of  an  Indian  peeping  over  the  bank.  In- 
stead of  hurrying  ahead  and  alarming  the  men  in  a  quiet 
way,  I  instantly  aimed  my  gun  at  the  head  and  fired.  The 
report  rang  out  sharp  and  loud  on  the  night  air,  and  was 
immediately  followed  by  an  Indian  whoop,  and  the  next 


62  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

moment  about  six  feet  of  dead  Indian  came  tumbling  into 
the  river.  I  was  not  only  overcome  with  astonishment,  but 
was  badly  scared,  as  I  could  hardly  realize  what  I  had  done. 
I  expected  to  see  the  whole  force  of  Indians  come  down 
upon  us.  While  I  was  standing  thus  bewildered,  the  men, 
who  had  heard  the  shot  and  the  war-whoop  and  had  seen  the 
Indian  take  a  tumble,  came  rushing  back. 

"  Who  fired  that  shot  ? "  cried  Frank  McCarthy. 

"  I  did,"  replied  I,  rather  proudly,  as  my  confidence  re- 
turned and  I  saw  the  men  coming  up. 

"  Yes,  and  little  Billy  has  killed  an  Indian  stone-dead — 
too  dead  to  skin,"  said  one  of  the  men,  who  had  approached 
nearer  than  the  rest,  and  had  almost  stumbled  upon  the 
corpse.  From  that  time  forward  I  became  a  hero  and  an 
Indian  killer.  This  was,  of  course,  the  first  Indian  I  had 
ever  shot,  and  as  I  was  not  then  more  than  eleven  years  of 
age,  my  exploit  created  quite  a  sensation. 

The  other  Indians,  upon  learning  what  had  happened  to 
their  "  advance  guard,"  set  up  a  terrible  howling,  and  fired 
several  volleys  at  us,  but  without  doing  any  injury,  as  «ve 
were  so  well  protected  by  the  bank.  We  resumed  our  jour- 
ney down  the  river,  and  traveled  all  night  long.  Just  before 
daylight,  Frank  McCarthy  crawled  out  over  the  bank  and 
discovered  that  we  were  only  five  miles  from  Fort  Kearney, 
which  post  we  reached  in  safety  in  about  two  hours, — shortly 
after  reveille — bringing  the  wounded  man  with  us.  It  was 
indeed  a  relief  to  us  all  to  feel  that  once  more  we  were  safe. 

Frank  McCarthy  immediately  reported  to  the  commanding 
officer  and  informed  him  of  all  that  had  happened.  The 
commandant  at  once  ordered  a  company  of  cavalry  and  one 
of  infantry  to  proceed  to  Plum  Creek  on  a  forced  march- 
taking  a  howitzer  with  them — to  endeavor  to  recapture  the 
cattle  from  the  Indians. 

The  firm  of  Russell,  Majors  &  Waddell  had  a  division 
agent  at  Kearney,  and  this  agent  mounted  us  on  mules  so 


MY  NAME  IN  THE  PAPERS.  63 

that  we  could  accompany  the  troops.  On  reaching  the  place 
where  the  Indians  had  surprised  us,  we  found  the  bodies  of 
the  three  men  whom  they  had  killed  and  scalped,  and  liter- 
ally cut  into  pieces.  We  of  course  buried  the  remains.  We 
caught  but  few  of  the  cattle  ;  the  most  of  them  having  been 
driven  off  and  stampeded  with  the  buffaloes,  there  being 
numerous  immense  herds  of  the  latter  in  that  section  of  the 
country  at  that  time.  The  Indian's  trail  was  discovered  run- 
ning south  towards  the  Republican  river,  and  the  troops  fol- 
lowed it  to  the  head  of  Plum  Creek,  and  there  abandoned  it, 
returning  to  Fort  Kearney  without  having  seen  a  single 
red-skin. 

The  company's  agent,  seeing  that  there  was  no  further  use 
for  us  in  that  vicinity — as  we  had  lost  our  cattle  and  mules 
— sent  us  back  to  Fort  Leavenworth.  The  company,  it  is 
proper  to  state,  did  not  have  to  stand  the  loss  of  the  expe- 
dition, as  the  government  held  itself  responsible  for  such 
depredations  by  the  Indians. 

On  the  day  that  I  got  into  Leavenworth,  sometime  in  July, 
I  was  interviewed  for  the  first  time  in  my  life  by  a  newspa- 
per reporter,  and  the  next  morning  I  found  my  name  in 
print  as  "  the  youngest  Indian  slayer  on  the  plains."  I  am 
candid  enough  to  admit  that  I  felt  very  much  elated  over 
this  notoriety.  Again  and  again  I  read  with  eager  interest 
the  long  and  sensational  account  of  our  adventure.  My 
exploit  was  related  in  a  very  graphic  manner,  and  for  a  long 
time  afterwards  I  was  considerable  of  a  hero.  The  reporter 
who  had  thus  set  me  up,  as  I  then  thought,  on  the  highest 
pinnacle  of  fame,  was  John  Hutohinson,  and  I  felt  very 
grateful  to  him.  He  now  lives  in  Wichita,  Kansas. 


CHAPTER  V. 

IN    BUSINESS. 

IN  the  summer  of  1857,  Russell,  Majors  &  "Waddell  were 
sending  a  great  many  trains  across  the  plains  to  Salt  Lake 
with  supplies  for  General  Johnston's  army.  Men  were  in 
great  demand,  and  the  .company  was  paying  teamsters  forty 
dollars  per  month  in  gold.  An  old  and  reliable  wagon-master, 
named  Lewis  Simpson — who  had  taken  a  great  fancy  to  me, 
and  who,  by  the  way,  was  one  of  the  best  wagon-masters 
that  ever  ran  a  bull  train — was  loading  a  train  for  the  com- 
pany, and  was  about  to  start  out  with  it  for  Salt  Lake.  He 
asked  me  to  go  along  as  an  "  extra  hand."  The  high  wages 
that  were  being  paid  were  a  great  inducement  to  me,  and  the 
position  of  an  "  extra  hand"  was  a  pleasant  one.  All  that  I 
would  have  to  do  would  be  to  take  the  place  of  any  man  who 
became  sick,  and  drive  his  wagon  until  he  recovered.  I 
would  have  my  own  mule  to  ride,  and  to  a  certain  extent  I 
would  be  a  minor  boss. 

My  mother  was  very  much  opposed  to  my  taking  this  long 
trip,  as  I  would  be  absent  nearly  a  year,  and  there  was  a  pos- 
sibility that  something  might  arise  to  prevent  me  from  ever 
coming  back,  as  we  could  not  then  tell  how  the  Mormon 
difficulty  would  terminate.  Then  again,  owing  -to  the  Indi- 
ans, a  journey  over  the  plains  in  those  days  w^as  a  perilous 
undertaking.  She  said  that  as  I  had  recently  returned  from 

6-i 


I  FIND  EMPLOYMENT.  $5 

the  plains,  and  had  had  a  narrow  escape  from  death  at  the 
hands  of  the  Indians,  she  did  not  want  rne  to  risk  my  life  a 
second  time.  I  told  her  that  inasmuch  as  I  had  determined 
to  follow  the  plains  for  an  occupation,  nothing  could  now 
stop  me  from  going  on  this  trip,  and  if  it  became  necessary 
I  would  run  away. 

Seeing  that  it  was  impossible  to  keep  me  at  home,  she 
reluctantly  gave  her  consent,  but  not  until  she  had  called 
upon  Mr.  Russell  and  Mr.  Simpson  in  regard  to  the  matter, 
and  had  obtained  from  the  latter  gentleman  his  promise  that 
I  should  be  well  taken  care  of,  if  we  had  to  winter  in  the 
mountains.  She  did  not  like  the  appearance  of  Simpson, 
and  upon  inquiry  she^learned,  to  her  dismay,  that  he  was  a 
desperate  character,  and  that  on  nearly  every  trip  he  had 
made  across  the  plains  he  had  killed  some  one.  Such  a  man, 
she  thought,  was  not  a  n't  master  or  companion  for  her  son, 
and  she  was  very  anxious  to  have  me  go  with  some  other 
wagon-master;  but  I  still  insisted  upon  remaining  with 
Simpson. 

"  Madam,  I  can  assure  you  that  Lew.  Simpson  is  one  of  the 
most  reliable  wagon-masters  on  the  plains,"  said  Mr.  Rus- 
sell, u  and  he  has  taken  a  great  fancy  to  Billy.  If  your  boy 
is  bound  to  go,  he  can  go  with  no  better  man.  No  one  will 
dare  to  impose  on  him  while  he  is  with  Lew.  Simpson,  whom 
I  will  instruct  to  take  good  care  of  the  boy.  Upon  reaching 
Fort  Laramie,  Billy  can,  if  he  wishes,  exchange  places  with 
some  fresh  man  coming  back  on  a  returning  train,  and  thus 
come  home  without  making  the  whole  trip." 

This  seemed  to  satisfy  mother,  and  then  she  had  a  long 
talk  with  Simpson  himself,  imploring  him  not  to  forget  his 
promise  to  take  good  care  of  her  precious  boy.  He  prom- 
ised everything  that  she  asked.  Thus,  after  much  trouble,  I 
became  one  of  the  members  of  Simpson's  train.  Before 
taking  our  departure,  I  arranged  with  Russell,  Majors  & 
Waddell  that  when  my  pay  should  fall  due  it  should  be  paid 
over  to  mother. . 


<5(5  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

As  a  matter  of  interest  to  the  general  reader,  it  may  be 
well  in  this  connection  to  give  a  brief  description  of  a  freight 
train.  The  wagons  used  in  those  days  by  Hussell,  Majors  & 
Waddell  were  known  as  the  "  J.  Murphy  wagons,"  made  at 
St.  Louis  specially  for  the  plains  business.  They  were  very 
large  and  were  strongly  built,  being  capable  of  carrying  seven 
thousand  pounds  of  freight  each.  The  wagon-boxes  were 
very  commodious — being  as  large  as  the  rooms  of  an  ordi- 
nary house — and  were  covered  with  two  heavy  canvas  sheets 
to  protect  the  merchandise  from  the  rain.  These  wagons 
were  generally  sent  out  from  Leavenworth,  each  loaded  with 
six  thousand  pounds  of  freight,  and  each  drawn  by  several 
yokes  of  oxen  in  charge  of  one  driver.^  A  train  consisted  of 
twenty -five  wagons,  air  in  charge  of  one  man,  who  was 
known  as  the  wagon-master.  The  second  man  in  command 
was  the  assistant  wagon-master ;  then  came  the  "  extra 
hand,"  next  the  night  herder;  and  lastly,  the  cavallard 
driver,  whose  duty  it  was  to  drive  the  lame  and  loose  cattle. 
There  were  thirty-one  men  all  told  in  a  train.  The  men  did 
their  own  cooking,  being  divided  into  messes  of  seven.  One 
man  cooked,  another  brought  wood  and  water,  another  stood 
guard,  and  so  on,  each  having  some  duty  to  perform  while 
getting  meals.  All  were  heavily  armed  with  Colt's  pistols 
and  Mississippi  yagers,  and  every  one  always  had  his  weap- 
ons handy  so  as  to  be  prepared  for  any  emergency. 

The  wagon-master,  in  the  language  of  the  plains,  was 
called  the  "  bull-wagon  boss  "  ;  the  teamsters  were  known  as 
"  bull-whackers  "  ;  and  the  whole  train  was  denominated  a 
"  bull-outfit."  Everything  at  that  time  was  called  an  "  out- 
fit." The  men  of  the  plains  were  always  full  of  droll 
humor  and  exciting  stories  of  their  own  experiences,  and 
many  an  hour  I  spent  in  listening  to  the  recitals  of  thrilling 
adventures  and  hair-breadth  escapes. 

Eussell,  Majors  &  Waddell  had  in  their  employ  two  hun- 
dred and  fifty  trains,  composed  of  6,250  wagons,  75,000 
oxen,  and  about  eight  thousand  men ;  their  business  reaching 


THE  SALT  LAKE  TRAIL.  39 

to  all  the  government  frontier  posts  in  the  north  and  west, 
to  which  they  transported  supplies,  and  they  also  carried 
freight  as  far  south  as  New  Mexico. 

The  trail  to  Salt  Lake  ran  through  Kansas  to  the  north- 
west, crossing  the  Big  Blue  river,  then  over  the  Big  and 
Little  Sandy,  coining  into  Nebraska  near  the  Big  Sandy* 
The  next  stream  of  any  importance  was  the  Little  Blue, 
along  which  the  trail  ran  for  sixty  miles ;  then  crossed  a 
range  of  sand-hills  and  struck  the  Platte  river  ten  miles- 
below  Old  Fort  Kearney  ;  thence  the  course  lay  up  the  South 
Platte  to  the  old  Ash  Hollow  Crossing,  tTience  eighteen 
miles  across  to  the  North  Platte — near  the  mouth  of  the 
Blue  Water,  where  General  Harney  had  his  great  battle  in 
1855  with  the  Sioux  and  Cheyenne  Indians.  From  this- 
point  the  North  Platte  was  followed,  passing  Court  House 
Rock,  Chimney  Rock  and  Scott's  Bluifs,  and  then  on  to  Fort 
Laramie,  where  the  Laramie  River  was  crossed.  Still  fol- 
lowing the  North  Platte  for  some  considerable  distance,  the 
trail  crossed  this  river  at  old  Richard's  Bridge,  and  followed 
it  up  to  the  celebrated  Red  Buttes — crossing  the  Willow 
creeks  to  the  Sweet  Water,  passing  the  great  Independence 
Rock  and  the  Devil's  gate,  up  to  the  Three  Crossings  of  the 
Sweet  Water,  thence  past  the  Cold  Springs,  where,  three 
feet  under  the  sod,  on  the  hottest  day  of  summer,  ice  can  be 
found  ;  thence  to  the  Hot  Springs  and  the  Rocky  Ridge,  and 
through  the  Rocky  Mountains  and  Echo  Canon,  and  thence 
on  to  the  Great  Salt  Lake  valley. 

We  had  started  on  our  trip  with  everything  in  good  shape, 
following  the  above  described  trail.  During  the  first  week 
or  two  out,  I  became  well  acquainted  with  most  of  the  train 
men,  and  with  one  in  particular,  who  became  a  life-long  and 
intimate  friend  of  mine.  His  real  name  was  James  B. 
Hickok ;  he  afterwards  became  famous  as  "  Wild  Bill,  the 
Scout  of  the  Plains  " — though  why  he  was  so  called  I  never 
could  ascertain — and  from  this  time  forward  I  shall  refer  to 
him  by  his  popular  nickname.  He  was  ten  years  my  senior 


70  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


tall,  handsome,  magnificently  built  and  powerful  young 
fellow,  who  could  out-run,  out-jump  and  out-tight  any  man 
in  the  train.  He  was  generally  admitted  to  be  the  best  man 
physically,  in  the  employ  of  Eussell,  Majors  &  Waddell ; 
and  of  his  bravery  there  was  not  a  doubt.  General  Ouster, 
in  his  "Life  on  the  Plains,"  thus  speaks  of  Wild  Bill: 

li  Among  the  white  scouts  were  numbered  some  of  the 
most  noted  of  their  class.  The  most  prominent  man  among 
them  was  '  Wild  Bill,'  whose  highly  varied  career  was  made 
the  subject  of  an  illustrated  sketch  in  one  of  the  popular 
monthly  periodicals  a  few  years  ago.  '  Wild  Bill '  was  a 
strange  character,  just  the  one  which  a  novelist  might  gloat 
over.  He  was  a  plains-man  in  every  sense  of  the  word,  yet 
unlike  any  other  of  his  class.  In  person  he  was  about  six 
feet  and  one  inch  in  height,  straight  as  the  straightest  of  the 
warriors  whose  implacable  foe  he  was.  He  had  broad 
shoulders,  well-formed  chest  and  limbs,  and  a  face  strikingly 
handsome ;  a  sharp,  clear  blue  eye,  which  stared  you  straight 
in  the  face  when  in  conversation ;  a  finely-shaped  nose,  in- 
clined to  be  aquiline ;  a  well-turned  mouth,  with  lips  only 
partially  concealed  by  a  handsome  moustache.  His  hair  and 
complexion  were  those  of  the  perfect  blonde.  The  former 
was  worn  in  uncut  ringlets,  falling  carelessly  over  his  power- 
fully formed  shoulders.  Add  to  this  figure  a  costume 
blending  the  immaculate  neatness  of  the  dandy  with  the 
extravagant  taste  and  style  of  the  frontiersman,  and  you 
have  Wild  Bill.  *  *  *  *  Whether  on  foot  or  on  horseback, 
lie  was  one  of  the  most  perfect  types  of  physical  manhood  I 
ever  saw. 

"  Of  his  courage  there  could  be  no  question  ;  it  had  been 
brought  to  the  test  on  too  many  occasions  to  admit  of  a 
doubt.  His  skill  in  the  use  of  the  pistol  and  rifle  was  unerr- 
ing ;  while  his  deportment  was  exactly  the  opposite  of  what 
might  be  expected  from  a  man  of  his  surroundings.  It  was 
entirely  free  from  all  bluster  or  bravado.  He  seldom  spoke 
himself  unless  requested  to  do  so.  His  conversation,  strange 


WILD  BILL. 


to  say,  never  bordered  either  on  the  vulgar  or  blasphemous. 
His  influence  among  the  frontiersmen  was  unbounded,  his 
word  was  law;  and  many  are  the  personal  quarrels  and 
disturbances  which  he  has  checked  among  his  comrades  by 

his  simple  announcement  that  '  This  has  gone  far  enough,' 

if  need  be  followed  by  the  ominous  warning  that  when  per- 
sisted in  or  renewed  the  quarreler  <  must  settle  it  with  me  ' 

"Wild    Bill   was 
anything    but   a 
quarrelsome    man; 
yet  no  one  but  him- 
self could  enumerate 
the  many     conflicts 
in  which  he  had  been 
engaged,  and  which 
had   almost  always 
resulted  in  the  death 
of   his  adversary.    I 
have    a   personal 
knowledge     of     at 
least   half    a    dozen 
men  whom   he  had 
a  t    various   times 
killed,  one  of  these  being  at  the  time  a  member  of  my  com- 
mand.    Others  had  been  severely  wounded,  yet  he  always 
escaped  unhurt. 

"  On  the  plains  every  man  openly  carries  his  belt  with  its 
invariable  appendages,  knife  and  revolver — often  two  of 
the  latter.  Wild  Bill  always  carried  two  handsome  ivory- 
handled  revolvers  of  the  large  size ;  he  was  never  seen  with- 
out them.  *  *  *  *  Yet  in  all  the  many  affairs  of  this 
kind  in  which  Wild  Bill  has  performed  a  part,  and  which 
have  come  to  my  knowledge,  there  was  not  a  single  instance 
in  which  the  verdict  of  twelve  fair-minded  men  would  not 
have  been  pronounced  in  his  favor." 

Such  is  the  faithful  picture  of  Wild  Bill  as  drawn  bjr 


WILD    BILL. 


72  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

General  Ouster,  who  was  a  close  observer  and  student  of 
personal  character,  and  under  whom  Wild  Bill  served  as  a 
scout. 

The  circumstances  under  which  I  first  made  his  acquaint- 
ance and  learned  to  know  him  well  and  to  appreciate  his 
manly  character  and  kind-heartedness,  were  these.  One  of 
the  teamsters  in  Lew.  Simpson's  train  was  a  surly,  overbear- 
ing fellow,  and  took  particular  delight  in  bullying  and  tyr^ 
annizing  over  me,  and  one  day  while  we  were  at  dinner  he 
asked  me  to  do  something  for  him.  I  did  not  start  at  once, 
and  he  gave  me  a  slap  in  the  face  with  the  back  of  his  hand, 
— knocking  me  off  an  ox-yoke  on  which  I  was  sitting,  and 
sending  me  sprawling  on  the  ground.  Jumping  to  my  feet 
I  picked  up  a  camp  kettle  full  of  boiling  coffee  which  was 
setting  on  the  fire,  and  threw  it  at  him.  I  hit  him  in  the 
face,  and  the  hot  coffee  gave  him  a  severe  scalding.  He 
sprang  for  me  with  the  ferocity  of  a  tiger,  and  would  un- 
doubtedly have  torn  me  to  pieces,  had  it  not  been  for  the 
timely  interference  of  my  new-found  friend,  "Wild  Bill,  who 
knocked  the  man  down.  As  soon  as  lie  recovered  himself, 
he  demanded  of  Wild  Bill  what  business  it  was  of  his  that 
he  should  "  put  in  his  oar."  "  It's  my  business  to  protect  that 
boy,  or  anybody  else,  from  being  unmercifully  abused, 
kicked  and  cuffed,  and  I'll  whip  any  man  who  tries  it  on,'? 
paid  Wild  Bill  ;  "  and  if  you  ever  again  lay  a  hand  on  that 
boy — little  Billy  there — I'll  give  you  such  a  pounding  that 
you  won't  get  over  it  for  a  month  of  Sundays."  From  that 
time  forward  Wild  Bill  was  my  protector  and  intimate 
friend,  and  the  friendship  thus  begun  continued  until  his 
death. 

Nothing  transpired  on  the  trip  to  delay  or  give  us  any 
trouble  whatever,  until  the  train  struck  the  South  Platte 
river.  One  day  we  camped  on  the  same  ground  where  the 
Indians  had  surprised  the  cattle  herd,  in  charge  of  the  Mc- 
Carty  brothers.  It  was  with  difficulty  that  we  discovered 
any  traces  of  anybody  ever  having  camped  there  before,  the 


BUFFALOES  ON  THE  RAMPAGE.  73 

only  landmark  being  the  single  grave,  now  covered  with 
grass,  in  which  we  had  buried  the  three  men  who  had  been 
killed.  The  country  was  alive  with  buffaloes.  Vast  herds 
of  these  monarchs  of  the  plains  were  roaming  all  around  us, 
and  we  laid  over  one  day  for  a  grand  hunt.  Besides  killing 
quite  a  number  of  buffaloes,  and  having  a  day  of  rare  sport, 
we  captured  ten  or  Twelve  head  of  cattle,  they  being  a  por- 
tion of  the  herd  which  had  been  stampeded  by  the  Indians, 
two  months  before.  The  next  day  we  pulled  out  of  camp, 
and  the  train  was  strung  out  to  a  considerable  length  along 
the  road  which  ran  near  the  foot  of  tire  sand-hills,  two  miles 
from  the  river.  Between  the  road  and  the  river  we  saw  a 
large  herd  of  buffaloes  grazing  quietly,  they  having  been 
down  to  the  stream  for  a  drink. 

Just  at  this  time  we  observed  a  party  of  returning  Califor- 
nians  coming  from  the  West.  They,  too,  noticed  the  buffalo 
herd,  and  in  another  moment  they  were  dashing  down  upon 
them,  urging  their  steeds  to  the  greatest  speed.  The  buffalo 
herd  stampeded  at  once,  and  broke  for  the  hills  ;  so  hotly 
were  they  pursued  by  the  hunters  that  about  five  hundred  of 
them  rushed  through  our  train  pell-mell,  frightening  both 
men  and  oxen.  Some  of  the  wagons  were  turned  clear 
round,  and  many  of  the  terrified  oxen  attempted  to  run  to 
the  hills,  with  the  heavy  wagons  attached  to  them.  Others 
turned  around  so  short  that  they  broke  the  wagon  tongues 
off.  Nearly  all  the  teams  got  entangled  in  their  gearing,  and 
became  wild  and  unruly,  so  .that  the  perplexed  drivers  were 
unable  to  manage  them. 

The  buffaloes,  the  cattle,  and  the  drivers,  were  soon  run- 
ning in  every  direction,  and  the  excitement  upset  nearly 
everybody  and  everything.  Many  of  the  cattle  broke  their 
yokes  and  stampeded.  One  big  buffalo  bull  became  entan- 
gled in  one  of  the  heavy  wagon-chains,  and  it  is  a  fact  that 
in  his  desperate  efforts  to  free  himself,  he  not  only  actually 
snapped  the  strong  chain  in  two.  but  broke  the  ox-yoke  to 
which  it  was  attached,  and  the  last  seen  of  him  he  was  run- 


74:  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

* 

ning  towards  the  hills  with  it  hanging  from  his  horns.  A 
dozen  other  equally  remarkable  incidents  happened  during 
the  short  time  that  the  frantic  buffaloes  were  playing  havoc 
with  our  train,  and  when  they  had  got  through  and  left  us, 
our  outfit  was  very  badly  crippled  and  scattered.  This 
caused  us  to  go  into  camp  and  spend  a  day  in  replacing  the 
broken  tongues,  and  repairing  other  damages,  and  gathering 
up  our  scattered  ox-teams. 

The  next  day  we  rolled  out  of  camp,  and  proceeded  on 
our  way  towards  the  setting  sun.  Everything  ran  along 
smoothly  with  us  from  that  point  until  we  came  within 
about  eighteen  miles  of  Green  river,  in  the  Rocky  moun- 
tains— where  we  camped  at  noon.  At  this  place  we  had  to 
drive  our  cattle  about  a  mile  and  a  half  to  a  creek  to  water 
them.  Simpson,  his  assistant,  George  Woods  and  myself, 
accompanied  by  the  usual  number  of  guards,  drove  the  cat- 
tle over  to  the  creek,  and  while  on  our  way  back  to  camp, 
we  suddenly  observed  a  party  of  twenty  horsemen  rapidly 
approaching  us.  We  were  not  yet  in  view  of  our  wagons, 
as  a  rise  of  ground  intervened,  and  therefore  we  could  not 
signal  the  train-men  in  case  of  any  unexpected  danger 
befalling  us.  We  had  no  suspicion,  however,  that  we  were 
about  to  be  trapped,  as  the  strangers  were  white  men. 
When  they  had  come  up  to  us,  one  of  the  party,  who  evi- 
dently was  the  leader,  rode  out  in  front  and  said : 

"  How  are  you,  Mr.  Simpson  ? " 

"You've  got  the  best  of  me,  sir,"  said  Simpson,  who  did 
not  know  him. 

"  Well,  I  rather  think  I  have,"  coolly  replied  the  stranger, 
whose  words  conveyed  a  double  meaning,  as  we  soon  learned. 
We  had  all  come  to  a  halt  by  this  time,  and  the  strange 
horsemen  had  surrounded  us.  They  were  all  armed  with 
double-barreled  shot  guns,  rifles  and  revolvers.  We  also  were 
armed  with  revolvers,  but  we  had  had  no  idea  of  danger,  and 
these  men,  much  to  our  surprise,  had  "got  the  drop"  on  us? 
and  had  covered  us  with  their  weapons,  so  that  we  were 


CAPTURED  BY  THE  DANITES.  75 

completely  at  their  mercy.  The  whole  movement  of  corral- 
ing  us  was  done  so  quietly  and  quickly  that  it  was  accom- 
plished before  we  knew  it. 

"  I'll  trouble  you  for  your  six  shooters,  gentlemen,"  now 
said  the  leader.  > 

"  I'll  give  'em  to  you  in  a  way  you  don't  want,"  replied 
Simpson. 

The  next  moment  three  guns  were  leveled  at  Simpson. 
(i  If  you  make  a  move  you're  a  dead  man,"  said  the  leader. 

Simpson  saw  that  he  was  taken  at  a  great  disadvantage, 
and  thinking  it  advisable  riot  to  risk  the  lives  of  the  party 
by  any  rash  act  on  his  part,  he  said  :  "  I  see  now  that  you 
have  the  best  of  me,  but  who  are  you,  anyhow  ? " 

"I  am  Joe  Smith,"  was  the  reply. 

"  What !  the  leader  of  the  Danites  ?  "  asked  Simpson. 

"You  are  correct,"  said  Smith,  for  he  it  wus. 

"  Yes,"  said  Simpson,  ;<  I  know  you  now  ;  you  are  a  spy- 
ing scoundrel." 

Simpson  had  good  reason  for  calling  him  this  and  applying 
to  him  a  much  more  apprubrious  epithet,  for  only  a  short 
time  before  this,  Joe  Smith  had  visited  our  train  in  the  dis- 
guise of  a  teamster,  and  had  remained  with  us  two  days.  He 
suddenly  disappeared,  no  one  knowing  where  he  had  gone 
or  why  he  had  come  among  us.  But  it  was  all  explained  to 
us  now  that  he  had  returned  with  his  Mormon  Danites. 
After  they  had  disarmed  us,  Simpson  asked,  "  Well,  Smith, 
what  are  you  going  to  do  with  us  ?  " 

"  Ride  back  with  us  and  I'll  soon  show  you,"  said  Smith. 

We  had  no  idea  of  the  surprise  which  awaited  us.  As  we 
came  upon  the  top  of  the  ridge,  from  which  we  could  view 
our  camp,  we  were  astonished  to  see  the  remainder  of  the 
train  men  disarmed  and  stationed  in  a  group  and  surrounded 
by  another  squad  of  Danites,  while  other  Mormons  were 
searching  our  wagons  for  such  articles  as  they  wanted. 

"How  is  this?"  inquired  Simpson.  "  How  did  you  sur- 
prise my  camp  without  a  struggle  ?  I  can't  understand  it." 


76  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

"  Easily  enough,"  said  Smith  ;  "  jour  men  were  all  asleep 
under  the  wagons,  except  the  cooks,  who  saw  us  coming  and 
took  us  for  returning  Californians  or  emigrants,  and  paid  no 
attention  to  us  until  we  rode  up  and  surrounded  your  train. 
With  our  arms  covering  the  men,  we  woke  them  up,  and 
told  them  that  all  they  had  to  do  was  to  walk  out  and  drop 
their  pistols — which  they  saw  was  the  best  thing  they  could 
do  under  circumstances  over  which  they  had  no  control — 
and  you  can  just  bet  they  did  it." 

"  And  what  do  you  propose  to  do  with  us  now  ? "  asked 
Simpson. 

"  I  intend  to  burn  your  train,"  said  he ;  "  you  are  loaded 
with  supplies  and  ammunition  for  Sidney  Johnson,  and  as  I 
have  no  way  to  convey  the  stuff  to  my  own  people,  I'll  see 
that  it  does  not  reach  the  United  States  troops." 

"  Are  you  going  to  turn  us  adrift  here  ?  "  asked  Simpson, 
who  was  anxious  to  learn  what  was  to  become  of  himself 
and  his  men. 

"No;  I  hardly  am  as  bad  as  that.  I'll  give  you  enough 
provisions  to  last  you  until  you  can  reach  Fort  Bridger,"  re- 
plied Smith  ;  "  and  as  soon  as  your  cooks  can  get  the  stuff 
out  of  the  wagons,  you  car?  start." 

"  On  foot?"  was  the  laconic  inquiry  of  Simpson. 
"Yes  sir,"  was  the  equally  short  reply. 
"  Smith,  that's  too  rough  on  us  men.     Put  yourself  in  our 
place  and  see  how  you  would  like  it,"  said  Simpson;  "you 
can  wrell  afford  to  give  us  at  least  one  wagon  and  six  yokes  of 
oxen  to  convey  us  and  our  clothing  and  provisions  to  Fort 
Bridger.     You're  a  brute  if  you  don't  do  this." 

"Well,"  said  Smith,  after  consulting  a  minute  or  two  with 
some  of  his  company,  "  I'll  do  that  much  for  you." 

The  cattle  and  the  wagon  were  brought  up  according  to 
his  orders,  and  the   clothing  and  provisions  were  loaded  on. 
"  Now  you  can  go,"  said  Smith,  after  everything  had  been 
arranged. 

"  Joe  Smith,  I  think  you  are  a  mean  coward  to  set  us 


. 


THE  MARCH  TO  FORT  BRIDGER.  77 

afloat  in  a  hostile  country,  without  giving  us  our  arms,"  said 
Simpson,  who  had  once  before  asked  for  the  weapons,  and 
had  had  his  request  denied. 

Smith,  after  further  consultation  with  his  comrades,  said : 
"  Simpson,  you  are  too  brave  a  man  to  be  turned  adrift  here 
without  any  means  of  defense.  You  shall  have  your  revol- 
vers and  guns."  Our  weapons  were  accordingly  handed  over 
to  Simpson,  and  we  at  once  started  for  Fort  Bridger,  knowing 
that  it  would  be  useless  to  attempt  the  recapture  of  our 
train. 

When  we  had  traveled  about  two  miles  we  saw  the  smoke 
arising  from  our  old  camp.  The  Mormons  after  taking 
what  goods  they  wanted  and  could  carry  off,  had  set  fire  to 
the  wagons,  many  of  which  were  loaded  with  bacon,  lard, 
hard-tack,  and  other  provisions,  which  made  a  very  hot, 
fierce  fire,  and  the  smoke  to  roll  up  in  dense  clouds.  Some 
of  the  wagons  were  loaded  with  ammunition,  and  it  was  not 
long  before  loud  explosions  followed  in  rapid  succession. 
We  waited  and  witnessed  the  burning  of  the  train,  and  then 
pushed  on  to  Fort  Bridger.  Arriving  at  this  post,  we  learned 
that  two  other  trains  had  been  captured  and  destroyed  in  the 
same  way,  by  the  Mormons.  This  made  seventy -five  wagon 
loads,  or  450,000  pounds  of  supplies,  mostly  provisions, 
which  never  reached  General  Johnson's  command,  to  which 
they  had  been  consigned. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

HARD    TIMES. 

AS  it  was  getting  very  late  in  the  fall,  we  were  compelled 
to  winter  at  Fort  Bridger ;  and  a  long,  tedious  winter  it 
was.  There  were  a  great  many  troops  there,  and  about  four 
hundred  of  Russell,  Majors  &  WaddelPs  employees.  These 
men  were  all  organized  into  militia  companies,  which 
were  officered  by  the  wagon-masters.  Some  lived  in  tents, 
others  in  cabins.  It  was  known  that  our  supplies  would  run 
short  during  the  winter,  and  so  all  the  men  at  the  post  were 
put  on  three-quarter  rations  to  begin  with  ;  before  long  they 
were  reduced  to  one-half  rations,  and  finally  to  one-quarter 
rations.  We  were  forced  to  kill  our  poor  worn-out  cattle  for 
beef.  They  were  actually  so  poor  that  we  had  to  prop  them 
up  to  shoot  them  down.  At  last  we  fell  back  on  the  mules, 
which  were  killed  and  served  up  in  good  style.  Many  a 
poor,  unsuspecting  government  mule  passed  in  his  chips  that 
winter  in  order  to  keep  the  soldiers  and  bull-whackers  from 
starvation. 

It  was  really  a  serious  state  of  affairs.  The  wood  for  the 
post  was  obtained  from  the  mountains,  but  having  no  longer 
any  cattle  or  mules  to  transport  it,'  the  men  were  obliged  to 
haul  it  themselves.  Long  lariats  were  tied  to  the  wagons, 
and  twenty  men  manning  each,  they  were  pulled  to  and 
from  the  mountains.  Notwithstanding  all  these  hardships, 
the  men  seemed  to  be  contented  and  to  enjoy  themselves. 

T8 


JUMPED  BY  INDIANS.  79 

The  winter  finally  passed  away,  and  early  in  the  spring,  as 
soon  as  we  could  travel,  the  civil  employees  of  the  govern- 
ment, with  the  teamsters  and  freighters,  started  for  the  Mis- 
souri river ;  the  Johnson  expedition  having  been  abandoned. 

On  the  way  down  we  stopped  at  Fort  Laramie,  and  there 
met  a  supply  train  bound  westward.  Of  course  we  all  had  a 
square  meal  once  more,  consisting  of  hard  tack,  bacon,  coffee 
and  beans.  I  can  honestly  say  that  I  thought  it  was  the  best 
meal  I  had  ever  eaten  ;  at  least  I  relished  it  more  than  any 
other,  and  I  think  the  rest  of  the  party  did  the  same. 

On  leaving  Fort  Laramie,  Simpson  was  made  brigade 
wagon-master,  and  was  put  in  charge  of  two  large  trains,, 
with  about  four  hundred  extra  men,  who  were  bound  for 
Fort  Leavenworth.  "When  we  came  to  Ash  Hollow,  instead 
of  taking  the  usual  trail  over  to  the  South  Platte,  Simpson 
concluded  to  follow  the  North  Platte  down  to  its  junction 
with  the  South  Platte.  The  two  trains  were  traveling  about 
fifteen  miles  apart,  when  one  morning  while  Simpson  was 
with  the  rear  train,  he  told  his  assistant  wagon-master, 
George  Woods  and  myself  to  saddle  up  our  mules,  as  he 
wanted  us  to  go  with  him  and  overtake  the  head  train. 

We  started  off  at  about  eleven  o'clock,  and  had  ridden 
about  seven  miles  when — while  we  were  on  a  big  pla- 
teau, back  of  Cedar  Bluffs — we  suddenly  discovered  a  band 
of  Indians  coming  out  of  the  head  of  a  ravine,  half  a  mile 
distant,  and  charging  down  upon  us  at  full  speed.  I  thought 
that  our  end  had  come  this  time,  sure.  Simpson,  however, 
took  in  the  situation  in  a  moment,  and  knowing  that  it 
would  be  impossible  to  escape  by  running  our  played-oufe 
mules,  he  adopted  a  bolder  and  much  better  plan.  He 
jumped  from  his  own  mule,  and  told  us  to  dismount  also, 
He  then  shot  the  three  animals,  and  as  they  fell  to  the 
ground  he  cut  their  throats  to  stop  their  kicking.  He  then 
jerked  them  into  the  shape  of  a  triangle,  and  ordered  us 
inside  of  the  barricade. 

All  this  was  but  the  work  of  a  few  moments,  yet  it  waa 


gO  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

not  done  any  too  soon,  for  the  Indians  had  got  within  three 
hundred  yards  of  us,  and  were  still  advancing,  and  uttering 
their  demoniacal  yells  or  war-whoops.  There  were  forty  of 
the  red-skins  and  only  three  of  us.  We  were  each  armed 
with  a  Mississippi  yager  and  two  Colt's  revolvers. 

"  Get  ready  for  them  with  your  guns,  and  when  they 
come  within  fifty  yards,  aim  low,  blaze  away  and  bring 
down  your  man  !  " 

Such  was  the  quick  command  of  Simpson.  The  words 
had  hardly  escaped  from  his  mouth,  when  the  three  yagers 
almost  simultaneously  belched  forth  their  contents.  We 
then  seized  our  revolvers  and  opened  a  lively  fire  on  the 
•enemy,  at  short  range,  which  checked  their  advance.  Then 
we  looked  over  our  little  barricade  to  ascertain  what  effect 
our  fire  had  produced,  and  were  much  gratified  at  seeing 
three  dead  Indians  and  one  horse  lying  on  the  ground. 
Only  two  or  three  of  the  Indians,  it  seemed,  had  fire-arms. 
It  must  be  remembered  that  in  those  days  every  Indian  did 
not  own  a  needle  gun  or  a  Winchester  rifle,  as  they  now  do. 
Their  principal  weapons  were  their  bows  and  arrows. 

Seeing  that  they  could  not  take  our  little  fortification,  or 
drive  us  from  it,  they  circled  around  us  several  times,  shoot- 
ing their  arrows  at  us.  One  of  the  arrows  struck  George 
Wood  in  the  left  shoulder,  inflicting  only  a  slight  wound, 
however,  and  several  lodged  in  the  bodies  of  the  dead 
mules ;  otherwise  they  did  us  no  harm. 

The  Indians  finally  galloped  off  to  a  safe  distance,  where 
our  bullets  could  not  reach  them,  and  seemed  to  be  holding 
a  council.  This  was  a  lucky  move  for  us,  for  it  gave  us  an 
opportunity  to  reload  our  guns  and  pistols,  and  prepare  for 
the  next  charge  of  the  enemy.  During  the  brief  cessation 
of  hostilities,  Simpson  extracted  the  arrow  from  Wood's 
shoulder,  and  put  an  immense  quid  of  tobacco  on  the 
wound.  Wood  was  then  ready  for  business  again. 

The  Indians  did  not  give  us  a  very  long  rest,  for  with  an- 
other desperate  charge,  as  if  to  ride  over  us,  they  came  dash- 


HOLDING  THE  FORT. 


WE  HOLD  THE  FORT.  83 

ing  towards  the  mule  barricade.  "We  gave  them  a  hot  recep- 
tion from  our  yagers  and  revolvers.  They  could  not  stand, 
or  understand,  the  rapidly  repeating  fire  of  the  revolvers, 
and  we  again  checked  them.  They  circled  around  us  once 
more  and  gave  us  a  few  parting  shots  as  they  rode  off,  leav- 
ing behind  them  another  dead  Indian  snd  a  horse. 

o 

For  two  hours  afterwards  they  did  not  seem  to  be  doing 
anything  but  holding  a  council:  We  made  good  use  of  this 
time  by  Digging  up  the  ground  inside  the  barricade  with  our 
knives  and  throwing  the  loose  earth  around  and  over  the 
mules,  and  we  soon  had  a  very  respectable  fortification.  We 
were  not  troubled  any  more  that  day,  but  during  the  night 
the  cunning  rascals  tried  to  burn  us  out  by  setting  fire  to  the 
prairie.  The  buffalo  grass  was  so  short  that  the  fire  did  not 
trouble  us  much,  but  the  smoke  concealed  the  Indians  from 
our  view,  and  they  thought  that  they  could  approach  close  to 
us  without  being  seen.  We  were  aware  of  this,  and  kept  a 
sharp  look-out,  being  prepared  all  the  time  to  receive  them. 
They  finally  abandoned  the  idea  of  surprising  us/ 

Next  morning,  bright  and  early,  they  gave  us  one  more 
grand  charge,  and  again  we  "  stood  them  off."  They  then 
rode  away  half  a  mile  or  so,  and  formed  a  circle  around  us. 
Each  man  dismounted  and  sat  down,  as  if  to  wait  and  starve 
us  out.  They  had  evidently  seen  the  advance  train  pass  on 
the  morning  of  the  previous  day,  and  believed  that  we  be- 
longed to  that  outfit  and  were  trying  to  overtake  it;  they 
had  no  idea  that  another  train  was  on  jts  way  after  us. 

Our  hopes  of  escape  from  this  unpleasant  and  perilous  situ- 
ation now  depended  upon  the  arrival  of  the  rear  train,  and 
when  we  saw  that  the  Indians  were  going  to  besiege  us 
instead  of  renewing  their  attacks,  we  feit  rather  confident  of 
receiving  timely  assistance.  We  had  expected  that  the  train 
would  be  along  late  in  the  afternoon  of  the  previous  day, 
and  as  the  morning  wore  away  we  were  somewhat  anxious 
and  uneasy,  at  its  non-arrival. 

At  last,  about  ten  o'clock,  we  began  to  hear  in  the  distance 


84:  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

the  loud  and  sharp  reports  of  the  big  bull-whips,  which  were 
handled  with  great  dexterity  by  the  teamsters,  and  cracked 
like  rifle  shots.  These 'were  as  welcome  sounds  to  us  as  were 
the  notes  of  the  bag-pipes  to  the  beseiged  garrison  at  Luck- 
now,  when  the  reinforcements  were  coining  up  and  the 
pipers  were  heard  playing,  "  The  Campbells  are  Coining."1 
In  a  few  moments  we  saw  the  lead  or  head  wagon  coming 
slowly  over  the  ridge,  which  had  concealed  the  train  from 
our  view,  and  soon  the  whole  outfit  made  its  appearance. 
The  Indians  observed  the  approaching  train,  and  assembling 
in  #  group  they  held  a  short  consultation.  They  then 
charged  upon  us  once  more,  for  the  last  time,  and  as  they 
turned  and  dashed  away  over  the  prairie,  we  sent  our  fare- 
well shots  rattling  after  them.  The  teamsters,  seeing  the 
Indians  and  hearing  the  shots,  came  rushing  forward  to  our 
assistance,  but  by  the  time  they  reached  us  the  red-skins  had 
almost  disappeared  from  view.  The  teamsters  eagerly  asked 
us  a  hundred  questions  concerning  our  fight,  admired  our 
fort  and  p'raised  our  pluck.  Simpson's  remarkable  presence 
of  mind  in  planning  the  defense  was  the  general  topic  of 
conversation  among  all  the  men. 

When  the  teams  came  up  we  obtained  some  water  and 
bandages  with  which  to  dress  Wood's  wound,  which  had  be- 
come quite  inflamed  and  painful,  and  we  then  put  him  into 
one  of  the  wagons.  Simpson  and  myself  obtained  a  remount, 
bade  good-bye  to  our  dead  mules  which  had  served  us  so 
well,  and  after  collecting  the  ornaments  and  other  plunder 
from  tlie  dead  Indians,  we  left  their  bodies  and  bones  to 
bleach  on  the  prairie.  The  train  moved  on  again  and  we 
had  no  other  adventures,  except  several  exciting  buffalo 
hunts  on  the  South  Platte,  near  Plum  Creek. 

We  arrived  at  Fort  Leavenworth  about  the  middle  of 
July,  1858,  when  I  immediately  visited  home.  I  found 
mother  in  very  poor  health,  as  she  w^as  suffering  from 
asthma.  My  oldest  sister,  Martha,  had,  during  my  absence, 
been  married  to  John  Crane,  and  was  living  at  Leavenworth. 


TRAPPING  ON  THE  CHUGWATER.  85 

During  the  winter  at  Fort  Bridger  I  had  frequently  talked 
with  Wild  Bill  about  my  family,  and  as  I  had  become  greatly 
attached  to  him  I  asked  him  to  come  and  make  a  visit  at  our 
house,  which  he  promised  to  do.  So  one  day,  shortly  after 
our  return  from  Fort  Bridger,  he  accompanied  me  home 
from  Leavenworth.  My  mother  and  sisters,  who  had  heard 
so  much  about  him  from  me,  were  delighted  to  see  him  and 
he  spent  several  weeks  at  our  place.  They  did  everything 
possible  to  repay  him  for  his  kindness  to  me.  Ever  after- 
wards, when  he  was  at  or  near  Leavenworth,  Wild  Bill  came 
out  to  our  house  to  see  the  family,  whether  I  was  at  home  or 
not,  and  he  always  received  a  most  cordial  reception.  His 
mother  and  sisters  lived  in  Illinois,  and  he  used  to  call  our 
house  his  home,  as  he  did  not  have  one  of  his  own. 

I  had  been  home  only  about  a  month,  after  returning  from 
Fort  Bridger,  when  I  again  started  out  with  another  train, 
going  this  time  as  assistant  wagon-master  under  Buck  Bomer. 
We  went  safely  through  to  Fort  Laramie,  which  was  our 
destination,  and  from  there  we  were  ordered  to  take  a  load 
of  supplies  to  a  new  post  called  Fort  Wallach,  which  was 
being  established  at  Cheyenne  Pass.  We  made  this  trip  and 
got  back  to  Fort  Laramie  about  November  1st.  I  then  quit 
the  employ  of  Russell,  Majors  &  Waddell,  and  joined  a 
party  of  trappers  who  were  sent  out  by  the  post  trader,  Mr. 
Ward,  to  trap  on  the  streams  of  the  Chugwater  and  Lara- 
mie for  beaver,  otter,  and  other  fur  animals,  and  also  to 
poison  wolves  for  their  pelts.  We  were  out  two  months,  but 
as  the  expedition  did  not  prove  very  profitable,  and  was 
rather  dangerous  on  account  of  the  Indians,  we  abandoned 
the  enterprise  and  came  into  Fort  Laramie  in  the  latter  part 
of  December. 

Being  anxious  to  return  to  the  Missouri  river,  I  joined 
with  two  others,  named  Scott  and  Charley,  who  were  also 
desirous  of  going  East  on  a  visit,  bought  three  ponies  and  a 
pack-mule,  and  we  started  out  together.  We  made  rapid 
progress  on  our  journey,  and  nothing  worthy  of  note  happened 


86  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

until  one  afternoon,  along  the  banks  of  the  Little  Blue  River, 
we  spied  a  band  of  Indians  hunting  on  the  opposite  side  of 
the  stream,  three  miles  away.  We  did  not  escape  their  notice,, 
and  they  gave  us  a  lively  chase  for  two  hours,  but  they  could 
find  no  good  crossing,  and  as  evening  came  on  we  finally  got 
away  from  them. 

We  traveled  until  late  in  the  night ;  when  upon  discovering- 
a  low,  deep  ravine  which  we  thought  would  make  a  comfort- 
able and  safe  camping-place,  we  stopped  for  a  rest.  In 
searching  for  a  good  place  to  make  our  beds,  I  found  a  hole, 
and  I  called  to  my  companions  that  I  had  found  a  fine 
place  for  a  nest.  One  of  the  party  was  to  stand  guard  while 
the  others  slept.  Scott  took  the  first  watch,  while  Charley 
and  I  made  a  bed  in  the  hole. 

While  clearing  out  the  place  we  felt  something  rough,  but 
as  it  was  dark  we  could  not  make  out  what  it  was.  At  any 
rate  we  concluded  that  it  was  bones  or  sticks  of  wood ;  we 
thought  perhaps  it  might  be  the  bones  of  some  animal  which 
had  fallen  in  there  and  died.  These  bones,  for  such  they 
really  proved  to  be,  we  pushed  one  side  and  then  we  lay 
down.  But  Charley,  being  an  inveterate  smoker,  could  not 
resist  the  temptation  of  indulging  in  a  smoke  before  going 
to  sleep.  So  he  sat  up  and  struck  a  match  to  light  his  old 
pipe.  Our  subterranean  bed-chamber  was  thus  illuminated 
for  a  moment  or  two ;  I  sprang  to  my  feet  in  an  instant  for 
a  ghastly  and  horrifying  sight  was  revealed  to  us.  Eight  or. 
ten  human  skeletons  lay  scattered  upon  the  ground. 

The  light  of  the  match  died  out,  but  we  had  seen  enough 
to  convince  us  that  we  were  in  a  large  grave,  into  which, 
perhaps,  some  unfortunate  emigrants,  who  had  been  killed 
by  the  Indians,  had  been  thrown  ;  or,  perhaps,  seeking  ref- 
uge there,  they  had  been  corraled  and  then  killed  on  the 
spot.  If  such  was  the  case,  they  had  met  the  fate  of  thous- 
ands of  others,  whose  friends  have  never  heard  of  them 
since  they  left  their  eastern  homes  to  seek  their  fortunes  in 
the  Far  West.  However,  we  did  not  care  to  investigate  this 


CAMPING  IN  A  SEPULCHRE. 


BADLY  SCARED.  89 

mystery  any  further,  but  we  hustled  out  of  that  chamber  of 
death  and  informed  Scott  of  our  discovery.  Most  of  the 
plains-men  are  very  superstitious,  and  we  were  no  exception 
to  the  general  rule.  We  surely  thought  that  this  incident 
was  an  evil  omen,  and  that  we  would  be  killed  if  we  remained 
there  any  longer. 

"  Let  us  dig  out  of  here  quicker  than  we  can  say  Jack 
Robinson,"  said  Scott ;  and  we  began  to  "  dig  out "  at  once- 
We  saddled  our  animals  and  hurriedly  pushed  forward 
through  the  darkness,  traveling  several  miles  before  we  again 
went  into  camp.  Next  morning  it  was  snowing  fiercely,  but 
we  proceeded  as  best  we  could,  and  that  night  we  succeeded 
in  reaching  Oak  Grove  ranch,  which  had  been  built  during 
the  summer.  We  here  obtained  comfortable  accommoda- 
tions and  plenty  to  eat  and  drink — especially  the  latter. 

Scott  and  Charley  were  great  lovers  and  consumers  of 
"  tanglefoot,"  and  they  soon  got  gloriously  drunk,  keeping  it 
up  for  three  days,  during  which  time  they  gambled  with  the 
ranchmen,  who  got  away  with  all  their  money ;  but  little 
they  cared  for  that,  as  they  had  their  spree.  They  finally 
sobered  up,  and  we  resumed  our  journey,  urging  our  jaded 
animals  as  much  as  they  could  stand,  until  we  struck  Marys- 
ville,  on  the  Big  Blue.  From  this  place  to  Leaven  worth  we 
secured  first-rate  accommodations  along  the  road,  as  the  coun- 
try had  become  pretty  well  settled. 

It  was  in  February,  1859,  that  I  got  home.  As  there  was 
now  a  good  school  in  the  neighborhood,  taught  by  Mr. 
Divinny,  my  mother  wished  me  to  attend  it,  and  I  did  so  for 
two  months  and  a  half — the  longest  period  of  schooling  that 
I  ever  received  at  any  one  time  in  my  life.  As  soon  as  the 
spring  came  and  the  grass  began  growing,  I  became  uneasy 
and  discontented,  and  again  longed  for  the  free  and  open  life 
of  the  plains. 

The  Pike's  Peak  gold  excitement  was  then  at  its  height> 
and  everybody  was  rushing  to  the  new  gold  diggings.  I 


90 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


caught  the  gold-fever  myself,  and  joined  a  party  bound  for 
the  ne\v  town  of  Auraria,  on  Cherry  Creek,  afterwards 
called  Denver,  in  honor  of  the  then  governor  of  Kansas.  On 
arriving  at  Auraria  we  pushed  on  to  the  gold  streams  in  the 
mountains,  passing  up  through  Golden  Gate,  and  over  Guy 
Hill,  and  thence  on  to  Black  Hawk.  We  prospected  for  two 
months,  but  as  none  of  us  knew  anything  about  mining  we 
met  with  very  poor  success,  and  we  finally  concluded  that 


RAFTING    ON    THE    PLATTE. 


prospecting  for  gold  was  not  our  forte.  We  accordingly 
abandoned  the  enterprise  and  turned  our  faces  eastward  once 
more. 

When  we  struck  the  Platte  River,  the  happy  thought  of 
constructing  a  small  raft — which  would  float  us  clear  to  the 
Missouri  and  thence  down  to  Leavenworth — entered  our 
heads,  and  we  accordingly  carried  out  the  plan.  Upon  the 
completion  of  the  raft  we  stocked  it  with  provisions,  and 


RIDING  PONY  EXPRESS.  91 

"  set  sail "  down  the  stream.     It  was  a  light  craft  and  a  jolly 
cre\v,  and  all  was  smooth  sailing  for  four  or  five  days. 

When  we  got  near  old  Juie&burg,  we  met  with  a  serious 
mishap.  Our  raft  ran  into  an  eddy,  and  quick  as  lightning 
went  to  pieces,  throwing  us  all  into  the  stream,  which  was  so 
deep  that  we  had  to  swim  ashore.  We  lost  everything  we 
had,  which  greatly  discouraged  us,  and  we  thereupon  aban- 
doned the  idea  of  rafting  it  any  farther.  We  then  walked 
over  to  Julesburg,  which  was  only  a  few  miles  distant.  This 
ranch,  which  became  a  somewhat  famous  spot,  had  been 
established  by  "  Old  Jules,"  a  Frenchman,  who  was  after- 
wards killed  by  the  notorious  Alf.  Slade. 

The  great  pony  express,  about  which  so  much  has  been 
said  and  written,  was  at  that  time  just  being  started.  The 
line  was  being  stocked  with  horses  and  put  into  good  run- 
ning condition.  At  Julesburg  I  met  Mr.  George  Chrisman, 
the  leading  wagon-master  of  Russell,  Majors  &  Waddell, 
who  had  always  been  a  good  friend  to  me.  He  had  bought 
out  u  Old  Jules,"  and  was  then  the  owner  of  Julesburg 
ranch,  and  the  agent  of  the  pony  express  line.  He  hired 
me  at  once  as  a  pony  express  rider,  but  as  I  was  so  young  he 
thought  I  would  not  be  able  to  stand  the  fierce  riding  which 
was  required  of  the  messengers.  He  knew,  however,  that  I 
had  been  raised  in  the  saddle — that  I  felt  more  at  home  there 
than  in  any  other  place — and  as  he  saw  that  I  was  confident 
that  I  could  stand  the  racket,  and  could  ride  as  far  and  endure 
it  as  wrell  as  some  of  the  older  riders,  he  gave  me  a  short 
route  of  forty-five  miles,  writh  the  stations  fifteen  miles  apart, 
and  three  changes  of  horses.  I  was  required  to  make  fifteen 
miles  an  hour,  including  the  changes  of  horses.  I  was 
fortunate  in  getting  well-broken  animals,  and  being  so 
light,  I  easily  made  my  forty -five  miles  on  time  on  my 
first  trip  out,  and  ever  afterwards. 

I   wrote  to  mother  and  told  her    how  well  I  liked  the 
exciting  life  of   a  pony  express    rider.    She  replied,  and 
0 


92 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


begged  of  me  to  give  it  up,  as  it  would  surely  kill  me.  She 
was  right  about  this,  as  fifteen  miles  an  hour  on  horseback 
would,  in  a  short  time,  shake  any  man  "  all  to  pieces"  ;  and 
there  were  but  very  few,  if  any,  riders  who  could  stand  it 
for  any  great  length  of  time.  Nevertheless,  I  stuck  to  it  for 
two  months,  and  then,  upon  receiving  a  letter  informing  me 
that  my  mother  was  very  sick,  I  gave  it  up  and  went  back  to 
the  old  home  in  Salt  Creek  Yalley. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

ACCIDENTS    AND    ESCAPES. 

MY  restless,  roaming  spirit  would  not  allow  me  to  reniain 
at  home  very  long,  and  in  November,  after  the  recov- 
ery of  my  mother,  I  went  up  the  Republican  River  and  its 
tributaries  on  a  trapping  expedition  in  company  with  Dave 
Harrington.  Our  outfit  consisted  of  one  wagon  and  a  yoke 
of  oxen  for  the  transportation  of  provisions,  traps,  and  other 
necessaries.  We  began  trapping  near  Junction  City,  Kansas, 
and  then  proceeded  up  the  Republican  River  to  the  mouth  of 
Prairie  Dog  Creek,  where  we  found  plenty  of  beavers. 

Having  seen  no  signs  of  Indians  thus  far,  we  felt  compara- 
tively safe.  We  were  catching  a  large  number  of  beavers 
and  were  prospering  finely,  when  one  of  our  oxen,  having 
become  rather  poor,  slipped  and  fell  upon  the  ice,  dislocating 
his  hip,  so  that  we  had  to  shoot  him  to  end  his  misery.  This 
left  us  without  a  team  ;  but  we  cared  little  for  that,  however, 
as  we  had  made  up  our  minds  to  remain  there  till  spring,  when, 
and  it  was  deci4ed,  that  one  of  us  should  go  to  the  nearest 
settlement  and  get  a  yoke  of  oxen  with  which  to  haul  our 
wagon  into  some  place  of  safety  where  we  could  leave  it. 

"We  would  probably  have  pulled  through  the  winter  all 
right  had  it  not  been  for  a  very  serious  accident  which  befell 
me  just  at  that  time.  Spying  a  herd  of  elk,  we  started  in 
pursuit  of  them,  and  creeping  up  towards  them  as  slyly  as 

93 


94  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

possible,  while  going  around  the  bend  of  a  sharp  bluff  or 
bank  of  the  creek  I  slipped  and  broke  my  leg  just  above  the 
ankle.  Notwithstanding  the  great  pain  I  was  suffering, 
Harrington  could  not  help  laughing  when  I  .urged  him  to 
shoot  me,  as  he  had  the  ox,  and  thus  end  my  misery.  He 
told  me  to  "  brace  up,"  and  that  he  would  bring  me  out 
"  all  right." 

"I  am  not  much  of  a  surgeon,"  said  he,  " but  I  can  fix 
that  leg  of  yours,  even  if  I  haven't  got  a  diploma." 

He  succeeded  in  getting  me  back  to  camp,  which  was  only 
a  few  yards  from  the  creek,  and  then  he  set  the  fracture  as 
well  as  he  knew  how,  and  made  me  as  comfortable  as  was 
possible  under  the  circumstances.  We  then  discussed  the 
situation,  which  to  say  the  least,  looked  pretty  blue.  Know- 
ing that,  owing  to  our  mishaps,  we  could  not  do  anything 
more  that  winter,  and  as  I  dreaded  the  idea  of  lying  there 
on  my  back  with  a  broken  leg  for  weeks,  and  perhaps  months, 
I  prevailed  upon  Harrington  to  go  the  nearest  settlement — 
about  125  miles  distant — to  obtain  a  yoke  of  cattle,  and  then 
come  back  for  me. 

This  he  consented  to  do  ;  but  before  leaving  he  gathered 
plenty  of  wood,  and  as  the  ground  was  covered  with  snow,  I 
would  have  no  difficulty  in  getting  water  if  I  had  a  fire. 
There  was  plenty  of  fresh  meat  and  other  provisions  in  the 
"  dug  out,"  so  that  I  had  no  fears  of  starvation.  The  "  dug- 
out," which  we  had  built  immediately  after  we  had  deter- 
mined to  remain  there  all  winter,  was  a  very  cosy  hole  in 
the  ground,  covered  with  poles,  grass  and  sod,  with  a  fire- 
place in  one  end. 

Harrington  thought  it  would  take  him  twenty  days  or 
more  to  make  the  round  trip  ;  but  being  well  provided  for — 
for  this  length  of  time — I  urged  him  to  go  at  once.  Bidding 
me  good-bye  he  started  on  foot.  After  his  departure,  each 
day,  as  it  came  and  went,  seemed  to  grow  longer  to  me  as  I 
lay  there  helpless  and  alone.  I  made  a  note  of  each  day,  so 
as  to  know  the  time  when  I  might  expect  him  back. 


SAVED  BY  CHIEF  RXlN-IN-THE-FACE. 


A  DESPERATE  SITUATION:  97 

On  the  twelfth  day  after  Harrington  left  me,  I  was  awak- 
ened from  a  sound  sleep  by  some  one  touching  me  upon  the 
shoulder.  I  looked  up  and  was  astonished  to  see  an  Indian 
warrior  standing  at  my  side.  His  face  was  hideously  daubed 
with  paint,  which  told  me  more  forcibly  than  words  could 
have  done  that  he  was  on  the  war-path.  He  spoke  to  me  in 
broken  English  and  Sioux  mixed,  and  I  understood  him  to  ask 
what  I  was  doing  there,  and  how  many  there  were  with  me. 

By  this  time  the  little  dug-out  was  nearly  filled  with  other 
Indians,  who  had  been  peeping  in  at  the  door,  and  I  could 
hear  voices  of  still  more  outside  as  well  as  the  stamping  of 
horses.  I  began  to  think  that  my  time  had  come,  as  the  say- 
ing is,  when  into  the  cabin  stepped  an  elderly  Indian,  whom 
1  readily  recognized  as  old  Rain-in-the-Face,  a  Sioux  chief 
from  the  vicinity  of  Fort  Laramie.  I  rose  up  as  well  as  I 
could  and  showed  him  my  broken  leg.  I  told  him  where  I 
had  seen  him,  and  asked  him  if  he  remembered  me.  He 
replied  that  he  knew  me  well,  and  that  I  used  to  come  to  his 
lodge  at  Fort  Laramie  to  visit  him.  I  then. managed  to  make 
him  understand  that  I  was  there  alone  and  having  broken 
my  leg,  I  had  sent  my  partner  off  for  a  team  to  take  me 
away.  I  asked  him  if  his  young  men  intended  to  kill  me, 
and  he  answered,  that  was  what  they  had  proposed  to  do,  but 
he  would  see  what  they  had  to  say. 

The  Indians  then  talked  among  themselves  for  a  few  min- 
utes, and  upon  the  conclusion  of  the  consultation,  old  Rain- 
in-the-Face  turned  to  me  and  gave  me  to  understand  that  as 
I  was  yet  a  "papoose,"  or  a  very  young  man,  they  would  not 
take  my  life.  But  one  of  his  men,  who  had  no  fire-arms, 
wanted  my  gun  and  pistol.  I  implored  old  Rain-in-the-Face 
to  be  allowed  to  keep  the  weapons,  or  at  least  one  of  them, 
as  I  needed  something  with  which  to  keep  the  wolves  away. 
He  replied  that  as  his  young  men  were  out  on  the  war  path, 
lie  had  induced  them  to  spare  my  life  ;  but  he  could  not 
prevent  them  from  taking  what  ever  else  they  wanted. 

They  unsaddled  their  horses  as  if  to  remain  there  for  some 


98  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

time,  and  sure  enough  they  stayed  the  remainder  of  the  day 
and  all  night.  They  built  a  fire  in  the  dug-out  and  cooked  a 
lot  of  my  provisions,  helping  themselves  to  everything  as  if 
they  owned  it.  However,  they  were  polite  enough  to  give 
me  some  of  the  food  after  they  had  cooked  it.  It  was  a 
sumptuous  feast  that  they  had,  and  they  seemed  to  relish  it 
as  if  it  was  the  best  lay-out  they  had  had  for  many  a  long 
day.  They  took  all  my  sugar  and  coffee,  and  left  me  only 
some  meat  and  a  small  quantity  of  flour,  a  little  salt  and 
some  baking  powder.  They  also  robbed  me  of  such  cooking 
utensils  as  they  wished  ;  then  bidding  me  good-bye,  early  in 
the  morning,  they  mounted  their  ponies  and  rode  off  to  the 
south,  evidently  bent  on  some  murdering  and  thieving  expe- 
dition. 

I  was  glad  enough  to  see  them  leave,  as  my  life  had  un- 
doubtedly hung  by  a  thread  during  their  presence.  1  am 
confident  that  had  it  not  been  for  my  youth  and  the  timely 
recognition  and  interference  of  old  Rain-in-the-Face  they 
would  have  killed  me  without  any  hesitation  or  ceremony. 

The  second  day  after  they  had  gone  it  began  snowing,  and 
for  three  long  and  wear}7  days  the  snow  continued  to  fall 
thick  and  fast.  It  blocked  the  door-  way  and  covered  the 
dug-out  to  -the  depth  of  several  feet,  so  that  I  became  a  snow- 
bound prisoner.  My  wood  was  mostly  under  the  snow,  and 
it  was  with  great  difficulty  that  I  could  get  enough  to  start  a 
fire  with.  My  prospects  were  gloomy  indeed.  I  had  just 
faced  death  at  the  hands  of  the  Indians,  and  now  I  was  in 
danger  of  losing  my  life  from  starvation  and  cold.  I  knew 
that  the  heavy  snow  would  surely  delay  Harrington  on  his 
return  ;  and  I  feared  that  he  might  have  perished  in  the 
storm,  or  that  some  other  accident  might  have  befallen  him. 
Perhaps  some  wandering  band  of  Indians  had  run  across  him 
and  killed  him. 

I  was  continually  thinking  of  all  these  possibilities,  and  I 
must  say  that  my  outlook  seemed  desperate.  At  last  the 
twentieth  day  arrived  —the  day  on  which  Harrington  was  to 


A  JOYOUS  MEETING.  99 

return — and  I  counted  the  hours  from  morning  till  night, 
but  the  day  passed  away  with  no  signs  of  Harrington. 
The  wolves  made  the  night  hideous  with  their  howls ;  they 
gathered  around  the  dug-out ;  ran  over  the  roof;  and  pawed 
and  scratched  as  if  trying  to  get  in. 

Several  days  and  nights  thus  wore  away,  the  monotony 
all  the  time  becoming  greater,  until  at  last  it  became  almost 
unendurable.  Some  days  I  would  go  without  any  fire  at  all, 
and  eat  raw  frozen  meat  and  melt  snow  in  my  mouth  for 
water.  I  became  almost  convinced  that  Harrington  had  been 
caught  in  the  storm  and  had  been  buried  under  the  snow,  or 
was  lost.  Many  a  time  during  that  dreary  period  of  uncer- 
tainty, I  made  up  my  mind  that  if  I  ever  got  out  of  that 
place  alive,  I  would  abandon  the  plains  and  the  life  of  a 
trapper  forever.  I  had  nearly  given  up  all  hopes  of  leaving 
the  dug-out  alive. 

It  was  on  the  twenty-ninth  day,  while  I  was  lying  thus 
despondently  thinking  and  wondering,  that  I  heard  the  cheer- 
ful sound  of  Harrington's  voice  as  he  came  slowly  up  the 
creek,  yelling,  "  whoa!  haw!"  to  his  cattle.  A  criminal  on 
the  scaffold,  with  the  noose  around  his  neck,  the  trap  about 
to  be  sprung,  and  receiving  a  pardon  just  at  the  last  moment, 
thus  giving  him  a  new  lease  of  life,  could  not  have  been 
more  grateful  than  I  was  at  that  time.  It  was  useless  for 
me  to  try  to  force  the  door  open,  as  the  snow  had  completely 
blockaded  it,  and  I  therefore  anxiously  awaited  Harrington's 
arrival. 

"  Hello  !  Billy  !  "  he  sang  out  in  a  loud  voice  as  he  came 
up,  he  evidently  being  uncertain  as  to  my  being  alive. 

"  All  right,  Dave,"  was  my  reply. 

"  Well,  old  boy,  you're  alive,  are  you  ? "  said  he. 

"Yes;  and  that's  about  all.  I've  had  a  tough  siege  of  it 
since  you've  been  away,  and  I  came  pretty  nearly  passing  in 
my  chips.  I  began  to  think  you  never  would  get  here,  as  I 
was  afraid  you  had  been  snowed  under,"  said  I. 

He  soon  cleared   away  the  snow  from  the  entrance,  and 


100  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

opening  the  door  he  came  in.  I  don't  think  there  ever  was 
a  more  welcome  visitor  than  he  was.  I  remember  that  I  was 
so  glad  to  see  him  that  I  put  my  arms  around  his  neck  and 
hugged  him  for  live  minutes ;  never  shall  I  forget  faithful 
Dave  Harrington. 

"  Well,  Billy,  my  boy,  I  hardly  expected  to  see  you  alive 
again,"  said  Harrington,  as  soon  as  I  had  given  him  an  oppor- 
tunity to  draw  his  breath  ;  "  I  had  a  terrible  trip  of  it,  and  I 
didn't  think  I  ever  would  get  through.  1  was  caught  in  the 
snow-storm,  and  was  laid  up  for  three  days.  The  cattle  wan- 
dered away,  and  I  came  within  an  ace  of  losing  them  alto- 
gether. When  1  got  started  again  the  snow  was  so  deep 
that  it  prevented  me  from  making  much  headway.  But  as  I 
had  left  you  here  I  was  bound  to  come  through,  or  die  in  the 
attempt." 

Again  I  flung  my  arms  around  Dave's  neck  and  gave  him 
a  hug  that  would  have  done  honor  to  a  grizzly  bear.  My 
gratitude  was  thus  much  more  forcibly  expressed  than  it 
could  have  been  by  words.  Harrington  understood  this,  and 
seemed  to  appreciate  it.  The  tears  of  joy  rolled  down  my 
cheeks,  and  it  was  impossible  forme  to  restrain  them.  When 
my  life  had  been  threatened  by  the  Indians  I  had  not  felt 
half  so  miserable  as  when  I  lay  in  the  dug-out  thinking  I 
was  destined  to  die  a  slow  death  by  starvation  and  cold. 
The  Indians  would  have  made  short  work  of  it,  am.  would 
have  given  me  little  or  no  time  to  think  of  my  fate. 

I  questioned  Harrington  as  to  his  trip,  and  learned  all  the 
details.  He  had  passed  through  hardships  which  but  few 
men  could  have  endured.  Noble  fellow,  that  he  was.  He 
had  risked  his  own  life  to  save  mine. 

After  he  had  finished  his  story,  every  word  of  which  I  had 
listened  to  with  eager  interest,  I  related  to  him  my  own 
experiences,  in  which  he  became  no  less  interested.  He 
expressed  great  astonishment  that  the  Indians  had  not  killed 
me,  and  he  considered  it  one  of  the  luckiest  and  most 
remarkable  escapes  he  had  ever  heard  of.  It  amused  me^ 


ON  THE  ROAD  HOME.  101 

.however,  to  see  him  get  very  angry  when  I  told  him  that 
they  had  taken  my  gun  and  pistol  and  had  used  up  our  pro- 
visions. "  But  never  mind,  Billy,"  said  he,  "  we  can  stand 
it  till  the  snow  goes  off',  which  will  not  be  long,  arid  then  we 
will  pull  our  wagon  back  to  the  settlements." 

A  few  days  afterwards  Harrington  gathered  up  our  traps,, 
and  cleaned  the  snow  out  of  the  wagon.  Covering  it  with 
the  sheet  which  we  had  used  in  the  dug-out,  he  made  a  com- 
fortable bed  inside,  and  helped  me  into  it.  We  had  been, 
quite  successful  in  trapping,  having  caught  three  hundred 
beavers  and  one  hundred  otters,  the  skins  of  which  Harring- 
ton loaded  on  the  wagon.  We  then  pulled  out  for  the  set- 
tlements, making  good  headway,  as  the  snow  had  nearly  dis- 
appeared, having  been  blown  or  melted  away,  so  that  we  had 
no  difficulty  in  finding  a  road.  On  the  eighth  day  out  we 
came  to  a  farmer's  house,  or  ranch,  on  the  Republican  River, 
where  we  stopped  and  rested  for  two  days,  and  then  went  on 
to  the  ranch  where  Harrington  had  obtained  the  yoke  of 
cattle.  We  gave  the  owner  of  the  team  twenty-five  beaver 
skins,  equal  to  $60,  for  the  use  of  the  cattle,  and  he  let  us- 
have  tnem  until  we  reached  Junction  City,  sending  his  boy 
with  us  to  bring  them  back. 

At  Junction  City  we  sold  our  wagon  and  furs  and  went 
with  a  government  mule  train  to  Leavenworth — arriving- 
there  in  March,  1860.  I  was  just  able  to  get  around  on 
crutches  when  I  got  into  Leavenworth,  and  it  was  several 
months  after  that  before  I  entirely  recovered  the  use  of 
my  leg. 

During  the  winter  I  had  often  talked  to  Harrington  about 
my  mother  and  sisters,  and  had  invited  him  to  go  home  with 
me  in  the  spring.  I  now  renewed  the  invitation,  which  he 
accepted,  and  accompanied  me  home.  When  I  related  to 
mother  my  adventures  and  told  her  how  Harrington  had 
saved  my  life,  she  thanked  him  again  and  again.  I  never  saw 
a  more  grateful  woman  than  she  was.  She  asked  him  to  alwaye- 
make  his  home  with  us,  as  she  never  could  reward  him  suffi- 


102  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

eiently  for  what  lie  had  done  for  her  darling  boy,  as  she 
called  me.  Harrington  concluded  to  remain  with  us  through 
the  summer  and  farm  mother's  land.  But  alas  !  the^  uncer- 
tainty of  life.  The  coming  of  death  when  least  expected 
was  strikingly  illustrated  in  his  case.  During  the  latter  part 
of  April  he  went  to  a  nursery  for  some  trees,  and  while  com- 
ing home  late  at  night  he  caught  a  severe  cold  and  was  taken 
seriously  sick,  with  lung  fever.  Mother  did  everything  in 
her  power  for  him.  She  could  not  have  done  more  had  he 
been  her  own  son,  but  notwithstanding  her  motherly  care 
and  attention,  and  the  skill  of  a  physician  from  Leaven- 
worth,  he  rapidly  grew  worse.  It  seemed  hard,  indeed,  to 
think  that  a  great  strong  man  like  Harrington,  who  had 
braved  the  storms,  and  endured  the  other  hardships  of  the 
plains  all  winter  long,  should,  during  the  warm  and  beauti- 
ful days  of  spring,  when  surrounded  by  friends  and  the  com- 
forts of  a  good  home,  be  fatally  stricken  down.  But  such 
was  his  fate.  He  died  one  week  from  the  day  on  which  he 
was  taken  sick.  We  all  mourned  his  loss  as  we  would  that 
of  a  loved  son  or  brother,  as  he  was  one  of  the  truest,  brav- 
est, and  best  of  friends.  Amid  sorrow  and  tears  we  laid  him 
away  to  rest  in  a  picturesque  spot  on  Pilot  Knob.  His  death 
cast  a  gloom  over  our  household,  and  it  was  a  long  time 
before  it  was  entirely  dispelled.  I  felt  very  lonely  without 
Harrington,  and  I  soon  wished  for  a  change  of  scene  again. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

ADVENTURES  ON  THE  OVERLAND  ROAD. 

AS  the  warm  days  of  summer  approached  I  longed  for  the 
cool  air  of  the  mountains ;  and  to  the  mountains  I 
determined  to  go.  After  engaging  a  man  to  take  care  of  the 
farm,  I  proceeded  to  Leavenworth  and  there  met  my  old 
wagon-master  and  friend,  Lewis  Simpson,  who  was  fitting  out 
a  train  at  Atchison  and  loading  it  with  supplies  for  the 
Overland  Stage  Company,  of  which  Mr.  Russell,  my  old 
employer,  was  one  of  the  proprietors.  Simpson  was  going 
with  this  train  to  Fort  Laramie  and  points  further  west. 

"  Come  along  with  me,  Billy,"  said  he,  "  I'll  give  you  a 
good  lay-out.  I  want  you  with  me." 

"  I  don't  know  that  I  would  like  to  go  as  far  west  as  that 
again,"  replied  I,  k<  but  I  do  want  to  ride  the  pony  express 
once  more ;  there's  some  life  in  that." 

"  Yes,  that's  so  ;  but  it  will  soon  shake  the  life  out  of  you," 
said  he.  "  However,  if  that's  what  you've  got  your  mind  set 
on,  you  had  better  come  to  Atchison  with  me  and  see  Mr. 
Russell,  who  I'm  pretty  certain,  will  give  you  a  situation." 

I  replied  that  I  would  do  that.  I  then  went  home  and 
informed  mother  of  my  intention,  and  as  her  health  was  very 
poor  I  had  great  difficulty  in  obtaining  her  consent.  I  finally 
convinced  her  that  as  I  was  of  no  use  on  the  farm,  it  would  be 

103 


104  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

better  and  more  profitable  for  me  to  return  to  the  plains. 
So  after  giving  her  all  the  money  I  had  earned  by  trapping. 
I  bade  her  good-bye  and  set  out  for  Atchison. 

I  met  Mr.  Russell  there  and  asked -him  for  employment  a& 
a  pony  express-rider  ;  he  gave  me  a  letter  to  Mr.  Slader 
who  was  then  the  stage  agent  for  the  division  extending 
from  Julesburg  to  Rocky  Ridge.  Slade  had  his  headquarters 
at  Horseshoe  Station,  thirty-six  miles  west  of  Fort  Laramie 
and  I  made  the  trip  thither  in  company  with  Simpson  and 
his  train. 

Almost  the  very  first  person  I  saw  after  dismounting  from 
my  horse  was  Slade.  I  walked  up  to  him  and  presented  Mr. 
Russell's  letter,  which  he  hastily  opened  and  read.  "With  a 
sweeping  glance  of  his  eye  he  took  my  measure  from  head 
to  foot,  and  then  said  : 

"  My  boy,  you  are  too  young  for  a  pony  express-rider.  It 
takes  men  for  that  business." 

'k  I  rode  two  months  last  year  on  Bill  Trotter's  division, 
sir,  and  filled  the  bill  then  ;  and  I  think  I  am  better  able  to 
ride  now,"  said  I. 

u  What !  are  you  the  boy  that  was  riding  there,  and  was 
called  the  youngest  rider  on  the  road  ? " 

"  I  am  the  same  boy,"  I  replied,  confident  that  everything 
was  now  all  right  for  me. 

"  I  have  heard  of  you  before.  You  are  a  year  or  so  older 
now,  and  I  think  you  can  stand  it.  I'll  give  you  a  trial  any- 
how, and  if  you  weaken  you  can  come  back  to  Horseshoe 
Station  and  tend  stock." 

That  ended  our  first  interview.  The  next  day  he  assigned 
me  to  duty  on  the  road  from  Red  Buttesonthe  North  Platte, 
to  the  Three  Crossings  of  the  Sweetwater — a  distance  of 
seventy-six  miles — and  I  began  riding  at  once.  It  was  along 
piece  of  road,  but  I  was  equal  to  the  undertaking;  and  soon 
afterwards  had  an  opportunity  to  exhibit  rny  power  of  en- 
durance as  a  pony  express  rider. 

One  day  when  I  galloped  into  Three  Crossings, my  home 


A  LONG  RIDE. 


105 


station,  I  found  that  the  rider  who  was  expected  to  take  the 
trip  out  on  my  arrival,  had  got  into  a  drunken  row  the  night 
before  and  had  been  killed  ;  and  that  there  was  no  one  to  fill 
his  place.  I  did  not  hesitate  for  a  moment  to  undertake  an 

extra  rid  e  of  eighty- 
Iflve  miles  to  Rocky 
Ridge,  and  I  arriv- 
led   at   the  latter 
[place  on   time.     I 
then    turned   back 
'and    rode   to    Red 
Buttes,  my  starting 
j|      place,    accomplish- 


I    IMMEDIATELY   CHANGED    HORSES. 


Hlg 


OH 


the 


trip  a  distance  of  322  miles. 

Slade  heard  of  this  feat  of  mine,  and  one  day  as  he  was 
passing  on  a  coach  he  sang  out  to  me,  "  My  boy,  you're  a 
brick,  and  no  mistake.  That  was  a  good  run  you  made  when 
you  rode  your  own  and  Miller's  routes,  and  I'll  see  that  you 
get  extra  pay  for  it." 

Slade,  although  rough  at  times  and  always  a  dangerous 
character  —  having  killed  many  a  man  —  was  always  kind  to 
me.  During  the  two  years  that  I  worked  for  him  as  pony 
express-rider  and  stage-driver,  he  never  spoke  an  angry  word 
to  me. 

As  I  was  leaving  Horse  Creek  one  day,  a  party  of  fifteen 
Indians  "  jumped  me  "  in  a  sand  ravine  about  a  mile  west 
of  the  station.  They  fired  at  me  repeatedly,  but  missed 
their  mark.  I  was  mounted  on  a  roan  California  horse  — 
the  fleetest  steed  I  had.  Patting  spurs  and  whip  to  him, 
and  lying  flat  on  his  back,  I  kept  straight  on  for  Sweetwater 
Bridge  —  eleven  miles  distant  —  instead  of  trying  to  turn  back 
to  Horse  Creek.  The  Indians  came  on  in  hot  pursuit,  but 
ray  horse  soon  got  away  from  them,  and  ran  into  the  station 
two  miles  ahead  of  them.  The  stock-tender  had  been  killed 
there  that  morning,  and  all  the  stock  had  been  driven  off  by 


106 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


the  Indians,  and  as  I  was  therefore  unable  to  change  horses, 
I  continued  on  to  Ploutz's  Station — twelve  miles  further — 
thus  making  twenty -four  miles  straight  run  with  one  horse. 
I  told  the  people  at  Ploutz's  what  had  happened  at  Sweet- 
water  Bridge,  and  with  a  fresh  horse  went  on  and  finished 
the  trip  without  any  further  adventure. 

About  the  middle  of  September  the  Indians  became  very 
troublesome  on  the  line  of  the  stage  road  along  the  Sweet- 


ATTACK    ON    STAGE    COACH. 


water.  Between  Split  Rock  and  Three  Crossings  they 
robbed  a  stage,  killed  the  driver  and  two  passengers,  and 
badly  wounded  Lieut.  Flowers,  the  assistant  division  agent. 
The  red-skinned  thieves  also  drove  off  the  stock  from  the 
different  stations,  and  were  continually  lying  in  wait  for  the 
passing  stages  and  pony  express-riders,  so  that  we  had  to 
take  many  desperate  chances  in  running  the  gauntlet. 

The  Indians  had  now  become  so  bad  and  had  stolen  so 


A  HUNT  FOR  INDIANS.  107 

much  stock  that  it  was  decided  to  stop  the  pony  express  for 
at  least  six  weeks,  and  to  run  the  stages  but  occasionally 
during  that  period ;  in  fact,  it  would  have  been  almost  im- 
possible to  have  run  the  enterprise  much  longer  without  re- 
stocking the  line. 

While  we  were  thus  nearly  all  lying  idle,  a  party  was- 
organized  to  go  out  and  search  for  stolen  stock.  This  party 
was  composed  of  stage-drivers,  express-riders,  stock-tenders, 
and  ranchmen — forty  of  them  altogether — and  they  were 
well-armed  and  well-mounted.  They  were  mostly  men  who 
had  undergone  all  kinds  of  hardships  and  braved  every  dan- 
ger, and  they  were  ready  and  anxious  to  "  tackle  "  any  num- 
ber of  Indians.  Wild  Bill  (who  had  been  driving  stage  on 
the  road  and  had  recently  come  down  to  our  division)  was 
elected  captain  of  the  company. 

It  was  supposed  that  the  stolen  stock  had  been  taken  to 
the  head  of  Powder  River  and  vicinity,  and  the  party,  of 
which  I  was  a  member,  started  out  for  that  section  in  high 
hopes  of  success. 

Twenty  miles  out  from  Sweetwater  Bridge,  at  the  head  of 
Horse  Creek,  we  found  an  Indian  trail  running  north  towards 
Powder  River,  and  we  could  see  by  the  tracks  that  most  of 
the  horses  had  been  recently  shod  and  were  undoubtedly  our 
stolen  stage  stock.  Pushing  rapidly  forward,  we  followed 
this  trail  to  Powder  River;  thence  down  this  stream  to 
within  about  forty  miles  of  the  spot  where  old  Fort  Reno 
now  stands.  Here  the  trail  took  a  more  westerly  course 
along  the  foot  of  the  mountains,  leading  eventually  to  Crazy 
Woman's  Fork — a  tributary  of  Powder  River.  At  this 
point  we  discovered  that  the  party  whom  we  were  trailing 
had  been  joined  by  another  band  of  Indians,  and,  judging 
from  the  fresh  appearance  of  the  trail,  the  united  body  could 
not  have  left  this  spot  more  than  twenty -four  hours  before. 

Being  aware  that  we  were  now  in  the  heart  of  the  hostile 
country  and  that  we  might  at  any  moment  find  more  Indians 
than  we  had  "  lost,"  we  advanced  with  more  caution  than 


108  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

usual,  and  kept  a  sharp  lookout.  As  we  were  approaching 
•Clear  Creek,  another  tributary  of  Powder  river,  we  discov- 
ered Indians  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  creek,  some  three 
miles  distant ;  at  least  we  saw  horses  grazing,  which  was  a 
sure  sign  that  there  were  Indians  there. 

The  Indians  thinking  themselves  in  comparative  safety — 
never  before  having  been  followed  so  far  into  their  own 
country  by  white  men — had  neglected  to  put  out  any  scouts. 
They  had  no  idea  that  there  were  any  white  men  in  that 
part  of  the  country.  We  got  the  lay  of  their  camp,  and 
then  held  a  council  to  consider  and  mature  a  plan  for  captur- 
ing it.  We  knew  full  well  that  the  Indians  would  outnum- 
ber us  at  least  three  to  one,  and  perhaps  more.  Upon  the 
advice  and  suggestion  of  Wild  Bill,  it>  was  finally  decided 
that  we  should  wait  until  it  was  nearly  dark,  and  then,  after 
creeping  as  close  to  them  as  possible,  make  a  dash  through 
their  camp,  open  a  general  fire  on  them,  and  stampede  the 
horses. 

This  plan,  at  the  proper  time,  was  most  successfully  exe- 
cuted. The  dash  upon  the  enemy  was  a  complete  surprise 
to  them.  They  were  so  overcome  with  astonishment  that 
they  did  not  know  what  to  make  of  it.  We  could  not  have 
astonished  them  any  more  if  we  had  dropped  down  into  their 
camp  from  the  clouds.  They  did  not  recover  from  the  sur- 
prise of  this  sudden  charge  until  after  we  had  ridden  pell- 
mell  through  their  camp  and  got  away  with  our  own  horses 
as  well  as  theirs.  We  at  once  circled  the  horses  around 
towards  the  south,  and  after  getting  them  on  the  south  side 
of  Clear  Creek,  some  twenty  of  our  men — just  as  the  dark- 
ness was  coming  on — rode  back  and  gave  the  Indians  a  few 
parting  shots.  We  then  took  up  our  line  of  march  for 
Sweetwater  Bridge,  where  we  arrived  four  days  afterwards 
with  all  of  our  own  horses  and  about  one  hundred  captured 
Indian  ponies. 

The  expedition  had  proved  a  grand  success,  and  the  event 
was  celebrated  in  the  usual  manner — by  a  grand  spree. 


A  GRAND  SPREE.  109 

The  only  store  at  Sweetwater  Bridge  did  a  rushing  business 
for  several  days.  The  returned  stock-hunters  drank,  and 
gambled  and  fought.  The  Indian  ponies,  which  had  been 
distributed  among  the  captors,  passed  from  hand  to  hand  at 
almost  e'Tery  deal  of  the  cards.  There  seemed  to  be  no 
limit  to  the  rioting,  and  carousing  ;  revelry  reigned  supreme. 
On  the  third  day  of  the  orgie,  Slade,  who  had  heard  the 
news,  came  up  to  the  bridge  and  took  a  hand  in  the  "  fun," 
as  it  was  called.  To  add  some  variation  and  excitement  to 


ALF.    SLADE    KILLING    THE    DRIVER. 

the  occasion,  Slade  got  into  a  quarrel  with  a  stage-driver  and 
shot  him,  killing  him  almost  instantly. 

The  "  boys  "  became  so  elated  as  well  as  "  elevated  "  over 
their  success  against  the  Indians,  that  most  of  them  were  in 
favor  of  going  back  and  cleaning  out  the  whole  Indian  race. 
One  old  driver  especially,  Dan  Smith,  was  eager  to  open  a 
war  on  all  the  hostile  nations,  and  had  the  drinking  been 
continued  another  week  he  certainly  would  have  undertaken 
the  job,  single-handed  and  alone.  The  spree  finally  came 
to  an  end  ;  the  men  sobered  down  and  abandoned  the  idea 
of  again  invading  the  hostile  country.  The  recovered 
7 


110  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

horses  were  replaced  on  the  road,  and  the  stages  and  pony 
express  were  again  running  on  time. 

Slade,  having  taken  a  great  fancy  to  me,  said  :  "  Billy, 
I  want  you  to  come  down  to  my  headquarters,  and  I'll  make 
you  a  sort  of  supernumerary  rider,  and  .send  you  out  only 
when  it  is  necessary." 

I  accepted  the  offer,  and  went  with  him  down  to  Horse- 
shoe, where  I  had  a  comparatively  easy  time  of  it.  I  had 
always  been  fond  of  hunting,  and  I  now  had  a  good  opportu- 
nity to  gratify  my  ambition  in  that  direction,  as  I  had  plenty 
of  spare  time  on  my  hands.  In  this  connection  I  will  relate 
one  of  my  bear-hunting  adventures.  One  day,  when  I  had 
nothing  else  to  do,  I  saddled  up  an  extra  pony  express  horse, 
and  arming  myself  with  a  good  rifle  and  pair  of  revolvers, 
struck  out  for  the  foot  hills  of  Laramie  Peak  for  a  bear-hunt. 
Riding  carelessly  along,  and  breathing  the  cool  and  bracing 
autumn  air  which  came  down  from  the  mountains,  I  felt  as 
only  a  man  can  feel  who  is  roaming  over  the  prairies  of  the 
far  West,  well  armed,  and  mounted  on  a  fleet  and  gallant 
steed.  The  perfect  freedom  which  he  enjoys  is  in  itself  a 
refreshing  stimulant  to  the  mind  as  well  as  to  the  body.  Such 
indeed  were  my  feelings  on  this  beautiful  day,  as  I  rode  up 
the  valley  of  the  Horseshoe.  Occasionally  1  scared  up  a 
flock  of  sage-hens  or  a,  jack-rabbit.  Antelopes  and  deer  were 
almost  always  in  sight  in  any  direction,  but  as  they  were  not 
the  kind  of  game  I  was  after,  on  that  day,  I  passed  them  by, 
and  kept  on  towards  the  higher  mountains.  The  further  I 
rode  the  rougher  and  wilder  became  the  country,  and  1  knew 
that  I  was  approaching  the  haunts  of  the  bear.  I  did  not 
discover  any,  however,  although  I  saw  plenty  of  tracks  in  the 
snow. 

About  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  my  horse  having 
become  tired,  and  myself  being  rather  weary,  I  shot  a  sage- 
hen,  and  dismounting,  I  unsaddled  my  horse  and  tied  him  to 
a  small  tree,  where  he  could  easily  feed  on  the  mountain 
grass.  I  then  built  a  little  fire,  and  broiling  the  chicken 


MY  BIS AR  HUNT. 

and  seasoning  it  with  salt  and  pepper,  which  I  had  obtained 
from  my  saddle-bags,  I  soon  sat  down  to  a  "  genuine  square 
meal,"  which  1  greatly  relished. 

After  resting  for  a  couple  of  hours,  I  remounted  and 
resumed  my  upward  trip  to  the  mountains,  having  made  up 
my  mind  to  camp  out  that  night  rather  than  go  back  without 
a  bear,  which  my  friends  knew  I  had  gone  out  for.  As  the 
days  were  growing  short,  night  soon  came  on,  and  I  looked 
around  for  a  suitable  camping  place.  While  thus  engaged,  I 
scared  up  a  flock  of  sage-hens,  two  of  which  I  shot,  intend- 
ing to  have  one  for  supper  and  the  other  for  breakfast. 

By  this  time  it  was  becoming  quite  dark,  and  I  rode  down 
to  one  of  the  little  mountain  streams,  where  I  found  an  open 
place  in  the  timber  suitable  for  a  camp.  I  dismounted,  and 
after  unsaddling  my  horse  and  hitching  him  to  a  tree,  I 
prepared  to  start  a  fire.  Just  then  I  was  startled  by  hearing 
a  horse  whinnying  further  up  the  stream.  It  was  quite  a 
surprise  to  me,  and  I  immediately  ran  to  my  animal  to  keep 
him  from  answering,  as  horses  usually  do  in  such  cases.  I 
thought  that  the  strange  horse  might  belong  to  some  roaming 
band  of  Indians,  as  I  knew  of  no  white  men  being  in  that 
portion  of  the  country  at  that  time.  I  was  certain  that  the 
owner  of  the  strange  horse  could  not  be  far  distant,  and  I 
was  very  anxious  to  find  out  who  my  neighbor  was,  before 
letting  him  know  that  I  was  in  his  vicinity.  I  therefore  re- 
saddled  my  horse,  and  leaving  him  tied  so  that  I  could  easily 
reach  him  I 'took  my  gun  and  started  out  on  a  scouting  ex- 
pedition up  the  stream.  I  had  gone  about  four  hundred  yards 
when,  in  a  bend  of  the  stream,  I  discovered  ten  or  fifteen 
horses  grazing. 

On  the  opposite  side  of  the  creek  a  light  was  shining 
high  up  the  mountain  bank.  Approaching  the  mysterious 
spot  as  cautiously  as  possible,  and  when  within  a  few  yards 
of  the  light — which  I  discovered  came  from  a  dug-out  in  the 
mountain  side — I  heard  voices,  and  soon  I  was  able  to  distin- 
guish the  words,  as  they  proved  to  be  in  my  own  language. 


112  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

Then  I  knew  that  the  occupants  of  the  dug-out,  whence  the 
voices  "proceeded,  were  white  men.  Thinking  that  they 
might  be  a  party  of  trappers,  I  boldly  walked  up  to  the  door 
and  knocked  for  admission.  The  voices  instantly  ceased,  and 
for  a  moment  a  deathlike  silence  reigned  inside.  Then  there 
seemed  to  follow  a  kind  of  hurried  whispering — a  sort  of 
consultation — and  then  some  one  called  out : 

"  Who's  there  ?  " 

"  A  friend  and  a  white  man,"  I  replied. 

The  door  opened,  and  a  big,  ugly-looking  fellow  stepped 
forth  and  said  : 

"  Come  in." 

I  accepted  the  invitation  with  some  degree  of  fear  and  hes- 
itation, which  I  endeavored  to  conceal,  as  I  saw  that  it  was 
too  late  to  back  out,  and  that  it  would  never  do  to  weaken  at 
that  point,  whether  they  were  friends  or  foes.  Upon  enter- 
ing the  dug-out  my  eyes  fell  upon  eight  as  rough  and  villain- 
ous looking  men  as  1  ever  saw  in  my  life.  Two  of  them  I 
instantly  recognized  as  teamsters  who  had  been  driving  in 
Lew  Simpson's  train,  a  few  months  before,  and  had  been  dis- 
charged. 

They  were  charged  with  the  murdering  and  robbing  of  a 
ranchman  ;  and  having  stolen  his  horses  it  was  supposed 
that  they  had  left  the  country.  I  gave  them  no  signs  of  rec- 
ognition however,  deeming  it  advisable  to  let  them  remain 
in  ignorance  as  to  who  I  was.  It  was  a  hard  crowd,  and  I 
concluded  that  the  sooner  I  could  get  away  from  them  the 
better  it  would  be  for  me.  I  felt  confident  that  they  were  a 
band  of  horse-thieves. 

"  Where  are  you  going, young  man  ;  and  who's  with  you?" 
asked  one  of  the  men  who  appeared  to  be  the  leader  of  the 
gang. 

"  I  am  entirely  alone.  I  left  Horseshoe  station  this 
morning  for  a  bear-hunt,  and  not  finding  any  bears,  I  had 
determined  to  camp  out  for  the  night  arid  wait  till  morn- 
ing," said  I ;  "  and  just  as  I  was  going  into  camp,  a  few 


AMONG  VILLAIN  b.  115 

hundred  yards  down  the  creek,  I  heard  one  of  your  horses 
whinnying,  and  then  I  came  up  to  your  camp." 

I  was  thus  explicit  in  my  statement  in  order,  if  possible 
to  satisfy  the  cut-throats  that  I  was  not  spying  upon  them, 
but  that  my  intrusion  was  entirely  accidental. 

"Where's  your  horse?"  demanded  the  boss  thief. 

"  I  left  him  down  the  creek,"  I  answered. 

They  proposed  going  after  the  horse,  but  I  thought  that 
that  would  never  do,  as  it  would  leave  me  without  any 
means  of  escape,  and  I  accordingly  said,  in  hopes  to  throw 
them  off  the  track,  "  Captain,  I'll  leave  my  gun  here  and  go 
down  and  get  my  horse,  and  come  back  and  stay  all  night." 

I  said  this  in  as  cheerful  and  as  careless  a  manner  as  possi- 
ble, so  as  not  to  arouse  their  suspicions  in  any  way,  or  lead 
them  to  think  that  I  was  aware  of  their  true  character.  I 
hated  to  part  with  my  gun,  but  my  suggestion  of  leaving  it 
was  a  part  of  the  plan  of  escape  which  I  had  arranged.  If 
they  have  the  gun,  thought  I,  they  would  surely  believe  that 
I  intended  to  come  back.  But  this  little  game  did  not  work 
at  all,  as  one  of  the  desperadoes  spoke  up  and  said  : 

"Jim  and  I  will  go  down  with  you  after  your  horse,  and 
you  can  leave  your  gun  here  all  the  same,  as  you'll  not  need 
it." 

"  All  right,"  I  replied,  for  I  could  certainly  have  said 
nothing  else.  It  became  evident  to  me  that  it  would  be  bet- 
ter to  trust  myself  with  two  men  than  with  the  whole  party. 
It  was  apparent  that  from  this  time  on,  I  would  have  to  be  on 
the  alert  for  some  good  opportunity  to  give  them  the  slip. 

"  Come  along,"  said  one  of  them,  and  together  we  went 
down  the  creek,  and  soon  came  to  the  spot  where  my  horse 
was  tied.  One  of  the  men  unhitched  the  animal  and  said : 
« I'll  lead  the  horse." 

"  Yery  well,"  said  I,  "I've  got  a  couple  of  sage-hens  here. 
Lead  on." 

I  picked  up  the  sage-hens,  which  I  had  killed  a  few  hours 
before,  and  followed  the  man  who  was  leading  the  horse, 


116  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

while  his  companion  brought  up  the  rear.  The  nearer  we 
approached  the  dug-out  the  more  I  dreaded  the  idea  of  going 
back  among  the  villainous  cut-throats. 

My  first  plan  of  escape  having  failed,  I  now  determined 
upon  another. 

I  had  both  of  my  revolvers  with  me,  the  thieves  not  hav- 
ing thought  it  necessary  to  search  me.  It  was  now  quite 
dark,  and  I  purposely  dropped  one  of  the  sage-hens,  and 


MY    ESCAPE    FROM    THK    HOKSK    THIKVKS. 

asked  the  man  behind  me  to  pick  it  up.  While  he  was  hunt- 
ing for  it  on  the  ground,  I  quickly  pulled  out  one  of  my 
Colt's  revolvers  and  struck  him  a  tremendous  blow  on  the 
back  of  the  head,  knocking  him  senseless  to  the  ground.  I 
then  instantly  wheeled  around,  and  saw  that  the  man  ahead 
who  was  only  a  few  feet  distant,  had  heard  the  blow  and  had 
turned  to  see  what  wras  the  matter,  his  hand  upon  his  revol- 
ver. We  faced  each  other  at  about  the  same  instant,  but 


ESCAPING  FROM  THE  THIEVES.  H7 

before  he  could  fire,  as  he  tried  to  do,  I  shot  him  dead  in  his 
tracks.  Then  jumping  on  my  horse,  I  rode  down  the  creek 
as  fast  as  possible,  through  the  darkness  and  over  the  rough 
ground  and  rocks. 

The  other  outlaws  in  the  dug-out,  having  heard  the  shot 
which  I  had  fired,  knew  there  was  trouble,  and  they  all  came 
rushing  down  the  creek.  I  suppose,  by  the  time  they  reached 
the  man  whom  I  had  knocked  down,  that  he  had  recovered 
and  hurriedly  told  them  of  what  had  happened.  They  did  not 
stay  with  the  man  whom  I  had  shot,  but  came  on  in  hot  pur- 
suit of  me.  They  were  not  mounted,  and  were  making  bet- 
ter time  down  the  rough  canon  than  I  was  on  horseback. 
From  time  to  time  I  heard  them  gradually  gaining  on  me. 

At  last  they  had  come  so  near  that  I  saw  that  I  must  aban- 
don my  horse.  So  I  jumped  to  the  ground,  and  gave  him  a 
hard  slap  with  the  butt  of  one  of  my  revolvers,  which  started 
him  on  down  the  valley,  while  I  scrambled  up  the  mountain 
side.  I  had  not  ascended  more  than  forty  feet  when  I  heard 
my  pursuers  coming  closer  and  closer;  I  quickly  hid 
behind  a  large  pine  tree,  and  in  a  few  moments  they  all 
rushed  by  me,  being  led  on  by  the  rattling  footsteps  of  my 
horse,  which  they  heard  ahead  of  them.  Soon  I  heard  them 
firing  at  random  at  the  horse,  as  they  no  doubt  supposed  I 
was  still  seated  on  his  back.  As  soon  as  they  had  passed  me 
I  climbed  further  up  the  steep  mountain,  and  knowing  that 
I  had  given  them  the  slip,  and  feeling  certain  that  I  could 
keep  out  of  their  way,  I  at  once  struck  out  for  Horseshoe 
station,  which  was  twenty-five  miles  distant.  I  had  hard 
traveling  at  first,  but  upon  reaching  lower  and  better  ground, 
I  made  good  headway,  walking  all  night  and  getting  into  the 
station  just  before  daylight, — foot-sore,  weary,  and  generally 
played  out. 

I  immediately  waked  up  the  men  of  the  station  and  told 
them  of  my  adventure.  Slade  himself  happened  to  be  there, 
and  he  at  once  organized  a  party  to  go  out  and  hunt  up  the 
horse-thieves.  Shortly  after  daylight  twenty  well-armed 


118  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

stage-drivers,  stock-tenders  and  ranchmen  were  galloping  in 
the  direction  of  the  dug-out.  Of  course  I  went  along  with  the 
party,  notwithstanding  I  was  very  tired  and  had  had  hardly 
any  rest  at  all.  We  had  a  brisk  ride,  and  arrived* in  the 
immediate  vicinity  of  the  thieve's  rendezvous  at  about  ten 
o'clock  in  the  morning.  We  approached  the  dug-out  cau- 
tiously, but  upon  getting  in  close  proximity  to  it  we  could 
discover  no  horses  in  sight.  We  could  see  the  door  of  the 
dug-out  standing  wide  open,  arid  we  then  marched  up  to  the 
place.  No  one  was  inside,  and  the  general  appearance  of 
everything  indicated  that  the  place  had  been  deserted — that 
the  birds  had  flown.  Such,  indeed,  proved  to  be  the  case. 

We  found  a  new-made  grave,  where  they  had  evidently 
buried  the  man  whom  I  had  shot.  We  made  a  thorough 
search  of  the  whole  vicinity,  and  finally  found  their  trail 
going  southeast  in  the  direction  of  Denver.  As  it  would 
have  been  useless  to  follow  them,  we  rode  back  to  the  station  ; 
and  thus  ended  my  eventful  bear-hunt.  We  had  no  more 
trouble  for  some  time  from  horse-thieves  after  that. 

During  the  winter  of  1860  and  the  spring  of  1861  I  re- 
mained at  Horseshoe,  occasionally  riding  pony  express  and 
taking  care  of  stock. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

FAST    DK1V1NG-. 

IT  was  in  the  spring  of  1861,  while  I  was  at  Horseshoe, 
that  the  eastern-bound  coach  came  in  one  day  loaded 
down  with  passengers  and  baggage,  and  stopped  for  dinner; 
Horseshoe  being  a  regular  dinner  station  as  well  as  a  home 
station.  The  passengers  consisted  of  six  Englishmen,  and 
they  had  been  continually  grumbling  about  the  slow  time 
that  was  being  made  by  the  stages,  saying  that  the  farther 
they  got  East  the  slower  they  went. 

"  These  blarsted  'eathens  don't  know  hanything  habout 
staging,  hany-'ow,"  remarked  one  of  them. 

"Blarst  me  bloody  heyes  !  they  cawn't  stage  in  this  coun- 
try as  we  do  in  Hin gland,  you  know,"  said  another. 

Their  remarks  were  overheard  by  Bob  Scott,  who  was  to 
drive  the  coach  from  Horseshoe  to  Fort  Laramie,  and  he 
determined  to  give  them  satisfaction  before  they  got  over 
his  route.  Scott  was  known  to  be  the  best  reinsman  and  the 
most  expert  driver  on  the  whole  line  of  the  road.  He  was  a 
very  gentlemanly  fellow  in  his  general  appearance  and  con- 
duct, but  at  times  he  would  become  a  reckless  dare-devil,  and 
would  take  more  desperate  chances  than  any  other  driver. 
He  delighted  in  driving  wild  teams  on  the  darkest  nights, 
over  a  mountain  road,  and  had  thus  become  the  hero  of 
many  a  thrilling  adventure. 

It  happened  on  this  day  he  was  to  drive  a  team  of  six 

119 


120  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

pony  express  horses,  which  had  been  only  partially  broken 
in  as  a  stage  team.  As  the  stock-tenders  were  hitching  them 
up,  Bob,  who  was  standing  by,  said,  "  I'll  show  them  Eng- 
lishmen that  we  '  blarsted  heathens '  do  know  something 
about  staging  in  this  country."  We  all  knew  from  Bob's 
looks  that  something  was  up. 

It  required  several  men  to  hitch  up  this  frisky  team,  as  a 
man  had  to  hold  on  to  each  one  of  the  horses  by  the  bits, 
while  they  were  stringing  them  out.  The  Englishmen  came 
out  from  dinner,  and  were  delighted  to  see  the  horses  pranc- 
ing and  pawing  as  if  anxious  to  start. 

"Ha!  my  deah  fellah,  now  we  will  'ave  a  fine  ride  this 
hafternoon,"  said  one  of  them. 

"  By  Jove !  those  are  the  kind  of  'orses  they  bought  to 
'ave  on  hall  the  teams,"  remarked  another. 

"  Are  you  the  lad  who  is  going  to  drive  to-day  ? "  asked 
another  of  Bob. 

"Yes,  gentlemen,"  answered  Bob,  "Til  show  you  how 
we  stage  it  in  this  country." 

Bob  mounted  the  box,  gathered  the  lines,  and  pulling 
the  horses  strongly  by  the  bits,  he  sang  out  to  the  English- 
men, "All  aboard!"  Bob's  companion  on  the  box  was 
Capt.  Cricket;  a  little  fellow  who  was  the  messenger  of 
the  coach.  After  everybody  was  seated,  Bob  told  the  stock- 
tenders  to  "  turn  'em  loose." 

We,  who  were  standing  around  to  see  the  stage  start  out, 
expected  it  would  go  off  at  a  lively  rate.  We  were  consid- 
erably surprised,  therefore,  when,  after  the  horses  had  made 
a  few  lively  jumps,  Bob  put  on  the  big  California  brakes 
and  brought  them  down  to  a  walk.  The  road,  for  a  distance 
of  four  miles,  gradually  rose  to  the  top  of  a  hill,  and  all  the 
way  up  this  ascent,  Bob  held  the  impatient  team  in  check. 

"  Blarst  your  heyes,  driver,  why  don't  you  let  them  go?" 
exclaimed  one  of  the  passengers,  who  had  all  along  been  ex- 
pecting a  very  brisk  ride.  Every  once  in  a  while  they 
would  ask  him  some  such  question,  but  he  paid  no  attention 


BOB  SCOTT'S  FAMOUS  COACH  RIDE. 


BOB  SCOTT'S  DRIVE.  123 

to  them.  At  last  he  reached  the  top  of  the  hill,  and  then  he 
suddenly  flung  three  of  the  lines  on  the  left  side  of  the  team, 
and  the  other  three  on  the  right  side.  He  then  began 
"playing  the  silk  to  them," — that  is  to  say,  he  began  to  lash 
them  unmercifully.  The  team  started  off  like  a  streak  of 
lightning,  so  to  speak,  without  a  single  rein  being  held  by 
the  driver.  Bob  cried  out  to  the  Englishmen,  saying, 
"  Hold  on,  gentlemen,  and  I'll  give  you  a  lively  ride,  and 
show  you  how  to  stage  it  in  the  Rocky  Mountains." 

His  next  movement  was  to  pull  the  lamps  out  of  the  sock- 
ets and  throw  them  at  the  leaders.  The  glass  broke  upon 
their  backs  and  nearly  set  them  wild,  but  being  so  accus- 
tomed to  running  the  road,  they  never  once  left  the  track, 
and  went  flying  on  down  the  grade  towards  the  next  station, 
eight  miles  distant,  the  coach  bouncing  over  the  loose  stones 
and  small  obstacles,  and  surging  from  side  to  side,  as  an  egg- 
shell would  in  the  rapids  of  Niagara.  Not  satisfied  with  the 
break-neck  rate  at  which  they  were  traveling,  Bob  pulled 
out  his  revolver  and  fired  in  rapid  succession,  at  the  same 
time  yelling  in  a  demoniacal  manner. 

By  this  time  the  Englishmen  had  become  thoroughly 
frightened,  as  they  saw  the  lines  flying  wildly  in  every  direc- 
tion and  the  team  running  away.  They  did  not  know 
whether  to  jump  out  or  remain  in  the  coach.  Bob  would 
occasionally  look  down  from  his  seat,  and,  seeing  their  fright- 
ened faces,  would  ask,  "Well,  how  do  you  like  staging  in 
this  country  now  2  "  The  Englishmen  stuck  to  the  coach, 
probably  thinking  it  would  be  better  to  do  so  than  to  take 
the  chances  of  breaking  their  necks  by  jumping. 

As  the  flying  team  was  nearing  the  station,  the  stock 
tender  saw  that  they  were  running  away  and  that  the  driver 
had  no  control  over  them  whatever.  Being  aware  that  the 
pony  express  horses  were  accustomed  to  running  right  into 
the  stable  on  arriving  at  the  station,  he  threw  open  the  large 
folding  doors,  which  would  just  allow  the  passage  of  the 
team  and  coach  into  the  stable.  The  horses,  sure  enough, 


124  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

made  for  the  open  doorway.  Capt.  Cricket,  the  messenger, 
and  Scott  got  down  in  the  boot  of  the  coach  to  save  them- 
selves from  colliding  with  the  top  of  the  stable  door.  The 
coach  would  probably  have  passed  through  into  the  stable 
without  any  serious  damage  had  it  not  been  for  the  bar  or 
threshold  that  was  stretched  across  the  ground  to  fasten  the 
doors  to.  This  bar  was  a  small  log,  and  the  front  wheels 
struck  it  with  such  force  that  the  coach  was  thrown  up  high 
enough  to  strike  the  upper  portion  of  the  door-frame.  The 
top  of  the  coach  was  completely  torn  off,  and  one  of  the 
passenger's  arms  was  broken.  This  was  the  only  serious 
injury  that  was  done ;  though  it  was  a  matter  of  surprise  to 
all,  that  any  of  the  travelers  escaped. 

The  coach  was  backed  out,  when  the  running  gear  was 
found  to  be  as  good  as  ever.  The  top  was  soon  patched  up, 
a  change  of  team  was  made,  and  .Bob  Scott,  mounting  the  box 
as  if  nothing  had  happened,  took  the  reins  in  hand,  and 
shouted,  "All  aboard!"  The  Englishmen,  however,  had 
had  enough  of  Bob  Scott,  and  not  one  of  the  party  was 
willing  to  risk  his  life  with  him  again.  They  said  that  he 
was  drunk,  or  crazy  or  both,  and  that  they  would  report  him 
and  have  him  discharged  for  what  he  had  already  done. 

Bob  waited  a  few  minutes  to  give  them  an  opportunity  to 
take  their  seats  in  the  coach,  but  they  told  him  most  emphat- 
ically that  he  could  drive  on  without  them,  as  they  intended 
to  wait  there  for  the  next  stage.  Their  traps  were  taken  off, 
and  Bob  drove  away  without  a  single  passenger.  He  made 
his  usual  time  into  Fort  Laramie,  which  was  the  end  of  his 
run.  The  Englishmen  came  through  on  the  next  day's 
coach,  and  proceeded  on  to  Atchison,  where  they  reported 
Bob  to  the  superintendent  of  the  line,  who,  however,  paid 
little  or  no  attention  to  the  matter,  as  Bob  remained  on  the 
road.  Such  is  the  story  of  the  liveliest  and  most  reckless 
piece  of  stage-driving  that  ever  occurred  on  the  Overland 
stage  road. 


CHAPTER  X. 

QUESTIONABLE     PROCEEDINGS. 

HAYING  been  away  from  home  nearly  a  year,  and  hav- 
ing occasionally  heard  of  my  mother's  poor  health,  I 
determined  to  make  her  a  visit ;  so  procuring  a  pass  over 
the  road,  I  went  to  Leavenworth,  arriving  there  about  June 
1st,  1861,  going  from  there  home.  The  civil  war  had  broken 
out,  and  excitement  ran  high  in  that  part  of  the  country. 
My  mother,  of  course,  was  a  strong  Union  woman,  and  had 
such  great  confidence  in  the  government  that  she  believed  the 
war  would  not  last  over  six  months. 

Leavenworth  at  that  time  was  quite  an  important  outfit- 
ting post  for  the  West  and  Southwest,  and  the  fort  there 
was  garrisoned  by  a  large  number  of  troops.  While  in  the 
city  one  day  I  met  several  of  the  old,  as  well  as  the  young 
men,  who  had  been  members  of  the  Free  State  party  all 
through  the  Kansas  troubles,  and  who  had,  like  our  family, 
lost  everything  at  the  hands  of  the  Missourians.  They  now 
thought  a  good  opportunity  offered  to  retaliate  and  get  even 
with  their  persecutors,  as  they  were  all  considered  to  be 
secessionists.  That  they  were  all  secessionists,  however,  was 
not  true,  as  all  of  them  did  not  sympathize  with  the  South. 
But  the  Free  State  men,  myself  among  them,  took  it  for 
granted  that  as  Missouri  was  a  slave  state  the  inhabitants 
must  all  be  secessionists,  and  therefore  our  enemies.  A  man 
by  the  name  of  Chandler  proposed  that  we  organize  an  inde- 

125 


126 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


pendent  company  for  the  purpose  of  invading  Missouri  and 
making  war  on  its  people  on  our  own  responsibility.  He 
at  once  went  about  it  in  a  very  quiet  way,  and  succeeded  in 
inducing  twenty-five  men  to  join  him  in  the  hazardous, 
enterprise.  Having  a  longing  and  revengeful  desire  to  retal- 
iate upon  the  Missourians  for  the  brutal  manner  in  which 


they  had  treated  and  robbed 
my  family,  I  became  a  mem- 
ber of  Chandler's  company. 
His  plan  was  that  we  should 
leave  our  homes  in  parties  of 
not  more  than  two  or  three 
together,  and  meet  at  a  cer- 
tain point  near  Westport, 
Missouri,  on  a  fixed  day.  His 
instructions  were  carried  out 
to  the  letter,  and  we  met  at 
Ithe  rendezvous  at  the  appoint- 
ed time.  Chandler  had  been 
there  some  days  before  us, 
a  n  d,  thoroughly  disguised, 
had  been,  looking  around  the 
country  for  the  whereabouts 
I .  »f  all  the  best  horses.  He  di- 
rected us  to  secretly  visit  cer. 
NEARLY  EVERY  MAN  HAI>  TWO  HOUSES,  tain  farms  and  collect  all  the 
horses  possible,  and  bring  them  together  the  next  night. 
This  we  did,  and  upon  reassembling  it  was  found  that  nearly 


JAY-HAWKING.  127 

every  man  had  two  horses.  We  immediately  struck  out  for 
the  Kansas  line,  which  we  crossed  at  an  Indian  ferry  on  the 
Kansas  river,  above  Wyandotte,  and  as  soon  as  we  had  set 
foot  upon  Kansas  soil  we  separated  with  the  understanding 
that  we  were  to  meet  one  week  from  that  day  at  Leaven- 
worth. 

Some  of  the  parties  boldly  took  their  confiscated  horses- 
into  Leavenworth,  while  others  rode  them  to  their  homes* 
This  action  may  look  to  the  reader  like  horse-stealing,  and 
some  people  might  not  hesitate  to  call  it  by  that  name  ;  but 
Chandler  plausibly  maintained  that  we  were  only  getting 
back  our  own,  or  the  equivalent,  from  the  Missourians,  and 
as  the  government  was  waging  war  against  the  South,  it  was- 
perfectly  square  and  honest,  and  we  had  a  good  right  to  do 
it.  So  we  didn't  let  our  consciences  trouble  us  very  much. 

We  continued  to  make  similar  raids  upon  the  Missourian& 
off  and  on  during  the  summer,  and  occasionally  we  had  run- 
ning fights  with  them  ;  none  of  the  skirmishes,  however, 
amounting  to  much. 

The  government  officials  hearing  of  our  operations,  put 
detectives  upon  our  track,  and  several  of  the  party  were 
arrested.  My  mother,  upon  learning  that  I  was  engaged  in 
this  business,  told  me  it  was  neither  honorable  nor  right,  and 
sho  would  not  for  a  moment  countenance  any  such  proceed- 
ings. Consequently  I  abandoned  the  jay-hawking  enter- 
prise, for  such  it  really  was. 

About  this  time  the  government  bought  from  Jones  and 
Cart wright  several  ox-trains,  which  were  sent  to  Holla,  Mis- 
souri, all  being  put  in  charge  of  my  old  and  gallant  friend, 
Wild  Bill,  who  had  just  become  the  hero  of  the  day,  on 
account  of  a  terrible-  fight  which  he  had  had  with  a  gang  of 
desperadoes  and  outlaws,  who  infested  the  border  under  the 
leadership  of  the  then  notorious  Jake  McCandless.  In  this 
fight  he  had  killed  McCandless  and  three  of  his  men. 

The  aifair  occurred  while  Wild  Bill  was  riding  the  pony 
express  in  western  Kansas. 


128  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

The  custom  with  the  express  riders,  when  within  half  a 
mile  of  a  station,  was  either  to  *begin  shouting  or  blowing  a 
horn  in  order  to  notify  the  stock  tender  of  his  approach,  and 
to  have  a  fresh  horse  already  saddled  for  him  on  his  arrival, 
so  that  he  could  go  right  on  without  a  moment's  delay. 

One  day,  as  Wild  Bill  neared  Rock  Creek  station,  where 
he  was  to  change  horses,  he  began  shouting  as  usual  at  the 
proper  distance  ;  but  the  stock-tender,  who  had  been  married 
only  a  short  time  and  had  his  wife  living  with  him  at  the 
station,  did  not  make  his  accustomed  appearance.  Wild  Bill 
galloped  up  and  instead  of  finding  the  stock-tender  ready 
for  him  with  a  fresh  horse,  he  discovered  him  lying  across 
the  stable  door  with  the  blood  oozing  from  a  bullet-hole  in 
his  head.  The  man  was  dead,  and  it  was  evident  that  he 
had  been  killed  only  a  few  moments  before. 

In  a  second  Wild  Bill  jumped  from  his  horse,  and  looking 
in  the  direction  of  the  house  he  saw  a  man  coming  towards 
him.  The  approaching  man  fired  on  him  at  once,  but  missed 
his  aim.  Quick  as  lightning  Wild  Bill  pulled  his  revolver  and 
returned  the  fire.  The  stranger  fell  dead,  shot  through  the 
brain. 

"  Bill,  Blill !  Help  !  Help  !  save  me  !  "  Such  was  the  cry, 
that  Bill  now  heard.  It  was  the  shrill  and  pitiful  voice  of 
the  dead  stock-tender's  wife,  and  it  came  from  a  window  of 
the  house.  She  had  heard  the  exchange  of  shots,  and  knew 
that  Wild  Bill  had  arrived. 

He  dashed  over  the  dead  body  of  the  villain  whom  he  had 
killed,  and  .just  as  he  sprang  into  the  door  of  the  house,  he 
saw  two  powerful  men  assaulting  the  woman.  One  of  the 
desperadoes  was  in  the  act  of  striking  her  with  the  butt  end 
of  a  revolver,  and  while  his  arm  was  still  raised,  Bill  sent  a 
ball  crashing  through  his  skull,  killing  him  instantly.  Two 
other  men  now  came  rushing  from  an  adjoining  room,  and 
Bill,  seeing  that  the  odds  were  three  to  one  against  him, 
jumped  into  a  corner,  and  then  firing,  he  killed  another  of 
the  villains.  Before  he  could  shoot  again  the  remaining  two 


WILD  BILL  AND  THE  OUTLAWS. 


WILD  BILL'S  FIGHT  WITH  DESPERADOES.  131 

men  closed  in  upon  him,  one  of  whom  had  drawn  a  large 
bowie  knife.  Bill  wrenched  the  knife  from  his  grasp  and 
drove  it  through  the  heart  of  the  outlaw. 

The  fifth  and  last  man  now  grabbed  Bill  by  the  throat, 
and  held  him  at  arm's  length,  but  it  was  only  for  a  moment, 
as  Bill  raised  his  own  powerful  right  arm  and  struck  his 
antagonist's  left  arm  such  a  terrible  blow  that  he  broke  it. 
The  disabled  desperado,  seeing  that  he  was  no  lunger  a 
match  for  Bill,  jumped  through  the  door,  and  mounting  a 
horse  he  succeeded  in  making  his  escape — being  the  sole  sur- 
vivor of  the  Jake  McCandless  gang. 

Wild  Bill  remained  at  the  station  with  the  terrified 
woman  until  the  stage  came  along,  and  he  then  consigned 
her  to  the  care  of  the  driver.  Mounting  his  horse  he  at 
once  galloped  off,  and  soon  disappeared  in  the  distance, 
making  up  for  lost  time. 

This  was  the  exploit  that  was  on  everybody's  tongue  and 
in  every  newspaper.  It  was  one  of  the  most  remarkable 
and  desperate  hand  to  hand  encounters  that  has  ever  taken 
place  on  the  border. 

I  happened  to  meet  Wild  Bill  at  Leavenworth  as  he  was 
about  to  depart  for  Holla ;  he  wished  me  to  take  charge 
of  the  government  trains  as  a  sort  of  assistant  under  him, 
and  I  gladly  accepted  the  offer.  Arriving  at  Rolla,  we 
loaded  the  trains  with  freight  and  took  them  to  Springfield, 
Missouri. 

On  our  return  to  Rolla  we  heard  a  great  deal  of  talk  about 
the  approaching  fall  races  at  St.  Louis,  and  Wild  Bill  having 
brought  a  fast  running  horse  from  the  mountains,  deter- 
mined to  take  him  to  that  city  and  match  him  against  some 
of  the  high-flyers  there;  and  down  to  St.  Louis  we  went 
with  this  running  horse,  placing  our  hopes  very  high  on  him. 

Wild  Bill  had  no  difficulty  in  making  up  a  race  for  him. 
All  the  money  that  he  and  I  had  we  put  up  on  the  mountain 
runner,  and  as  we  thought  we  had  a  sure  thing,  we  also  bet 
the  horse  against  $250.  T  rode  the  horse  myself,  but  never- 


132  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

theless,  our  sure  thing,  like  many  another  sure  thing,  proved 
a  total  failure,  and  we  came  out  of  that  race  minus  the  horse 
and  every  dollar  we  had  in  the  world. 

Before  the  race  it  had  been  "  make  or  break  "  with  us,  and 
we  got  "  broke."  We  were  "  busted  "  in  the  largest  city  we 
had  ever  been  in,  and  it  is  no  exaggeration  to  say  that  we 
felt  mighty  blue. 

On  the  morning  after  the  race  we  went  to  the  military 
headquarters,  where  Bill  succeeded  in  securing  an  engage- 
ment for  himself  as  a  government  scout,  but  I  being  so 
young  failed  in  obtaining  similar  employment.  Wild  Bill,, 
however,  raised  some  money,  by  borrowing  it  from  a  friend, 
and  then  buying  me  a  steamboat  ticket  he  sent  me  back  to 
Leavenworth,  while  he  went  to  Springfield,  which  place 
he  made  his  headquarters  while  scouting  in  southeastern 
Missouri. 

One  night,  after  he  had  returned  from  a  scouting  expedi- 
tion, he  took  a  hand  in  a  game  of  poker,  and  in  the  course 
of  the  game  he  became  involved  in  a  quarrel  with  Dave 
Tutt,  a  professional  gambler,  about  a  watch  which  he  had 
won  from  Tutt,  who  would  not  give  it  up. 

Bill  told  him  he  had  won  it  fairly,  and  that  he  proposed  to 
have  it ;  furthermore,  he  declared  his  intention  of  carrying 
the  watch  across  the  street  next  morning  to  military  head- 
quarters, at  which  place  he  had  to  report  at  nine  o'clock. 

Tutt  replied  that  he  would  himself  carry  the  watch  across 
the  street  at  nine  o'clock,  and  no  other  man  would  do  it. 

Bill  then  said  to  Tutt  that  if  he  attempted  anything  of  the 
kind,  he  would  kill  him. 

A  challenge  to  a  duel  had  virtually  been  given  and  accept- 
ed, and  everybody  knew  that  the  two  men  meant  business. 
At  nine  o'clock  the  next  morning,  Tutt  started  to  cross  the 
street.  Wild  Bill,  who  was  standing  on  the  opposite  side, 
told  him  to  stop.  At  that  moment  Tutt,  who  was  carrying 
his  revolver  in  his  hand,  fired  at  Bill  but  missed  him. 
Bill  quickly  pulled  out  his  revolver  and  returned  the  fire, 


WILD  BILL'S  DUEL. 


133 


hitting  Tutt  squarely  in  the  forehead  and  killing  him 
instantly. 

Quite  a  number  of  Tutt's  friends  were  standing  in  the 
vicinity,  having  assembled  to  witness  the  duel,  and  Bill,  as 
soon  as  Tutt  fell  to  the  ground,  turned  to  them  and  asked 
if  any  one  of  them  wanted  to  take  it  up  for  Tutt;  if  so,  he 
would  accommodate  any  of  them  then  and  there.  But  none 
of  them  cared  to  stand  in  front  of  Wild  Bill  to  be  shot  at 
by  him. 

Nothing  of  course  was  ever  done  to  Bill  for  the  killing  of 
Tutt. 


CHAPTER  XL 

A    SOLDIER. 

IN  the  fall  of  1861  I  made  a  trip  to  Fort  Lamed,  Kansas, 
carrying  military  dispatches,  and  in  the  winter  I  ac- 
companied George  Long  through  the  country,  and  assisted 
him  in  buying  horses  for  the  government. 

The  'next  spring,  1862,  an  expedition  against  the  Indians 
was  organized,  consisting  of  a  volunteer  regiment,  the 
Ninth  Kansas,  under  Colonel  Clark.  This  expedition,  which 
I  had  joined  in  the  capacity  of  guide  and  scout,  proceeded 
to  the  Kiowa  and  Comanche  country,  on  the  Arkansas  river, 
along  which  stream  we  scouted  all  summer  between  Fort 
Lyon  and  Fort  Lamed,  on  the  old  Santa  Fe  trail.  We  had 
several  engagements  with  the  Indians,  but  they  were  of  no 
great  importance. 

In  the  winter  of  1862,  I  became  one  of  the  "  Red  Legged 
Scouts," — a  company  of  scouts  commanded  by  Captain  Tuff. 
Among  its  members  were  some  of  the  most  noted  Kansas 
Hangers,  such  as  Red  Clark,  the  St.  Clair  brothers,  Jack 
Harvey,  an  old  pony  express-rider  named  Johnny  Fry,  and 
many  other  well  known  frontiersmen.  Our  field  of  opera- 
tions was  confined  mostly  to  .the  Arkansas  country  and  south- 
western Missouri.  We  had  many  a  lively  skirmish  with  the 
bushwhackers  and  Younger  brothers,  and  when  we  were  not 
hunting  them,  we  were  generally  employed  in  carrying  dis- 
patches between  Forts  Dodge,  Gibson,  Leaven  worth,  and 

134 


I  ENLIST  IN  THE  ARMY.  135 

other  posts.  Whenever  we  were  in  Leavenworth  we  had  a 
very  festive  time.  We  usually  attended  all  the  balls  in  full 
force,  and  u  ran  things"  to  suit  ourselves.  Thus  1  passed 
the  winter  of  1862  and  the  spring  of  1863. 

Subsequently  I  engaged  to  conduct  a  small  train  to  Den- 
ver for  some  merchants,  and  on  reaching  that  place  in  Sep- 
tember, I  received  a  letter  stating  that  my  mother  was  not 
expected  to  live.  I  hastened  home,  and  found  her  danger- 
ously ill.  She  grew  gradually  worse,  and  at  la.-t,  on  the 
22d  of  November,  1863,  she  died.  Thus  passed  away  a  lov- 
ing and  affectionate  mother  and  a  noble,  brave,  good  and 
loyal  woman.  That  I  loved  her  above  all  other  persons,  no 
one  who  has  read  these  reminiscences  can  for  a  moment 
doubt. 

Previous  to  this  said  event  my  sister  Julia  had  been  mar- 
ried to  a  gentleman  named  J.  A.  Goodman,  and  they  now 
came  to  reside  at  our  house  and  take  charge  of  the  children, 
as  my  mother  had  desired  that  they  should  not  be  separated. 
Mr.  Goodman  became  the  guardian  of  the  minor  children. 

I  soon  left  the  home  now  rendered  gloomy  by  the  absence 
of  her  whom  I  had  so  tenderly  loved,  and  going  to  Leaven- 
worth  I  entered  upon  a  dissolute  and  reckless  life — to  my 
shame  be  it  said — and  associated  with  gamblers,  drunkards, 
and  bad  characters  generally.  I  continued  my  dissipation 
about  two  months,  and  was  becoming  a  very  "  hard  case." 
About  this  time  the  Seventh  Kansas  regiment,  known  as 
"Jennison's  Jay -hawkers,"  returned  from  the  war,  and  re- 
enlisted  and  re-organized  as  veterans.  Among  them  I  met 
quite  a  number  of  my  old  comrades  and  neighbors,  who  tried 
to  induce  me  to  enlist  and  go  south  with  them.  I  had  no  idea 
of  doing  any  thing  of  the  kind;  but  one  day,  after  having  been 
under  the  influence  of  bad  whisky,  I  awoke  to  find  myself 
a  soldier  in  the  Seventh  Kansas.  I  did  not  remember  how 
or  when  I  had  enlisted,  but  I  saw  I  was  in  for  it,  a$d  that 
it  would  not  do  for  me  to  endeavor  to  back  out. 

In  the  spring  of  1864:  the   regiment  was  ordered  to  Ten 


136  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

nessee,  and  we  got  into  Memphis  just  about  the  time  that 
General  Sturgis  was  so  badly  whipped  by  General  Forrest. 
General  A-  J-  Smith  re-organized  the  army  to  operate  against 
Forrest,  and  after  marching  to  Tupalo,  Mississippi,  we  had 
an  engagement  with  him  and  defeated  him.  This  kind  of 
fighting  was  all  new  to  me,  being  entirely  different  from 
any  in  which  I  had  ever  before  engaged.  I  soon  became  a 
non-commissioned  officer,  and  was  put  on  detached  service  as 
a  scout. 

After  skirmishing  around  the  country  with  the  rest  of  the 
army  for  some  little  time,  our  regiment  returned  to  Memphis, 
but  was  immediately  ordered  to  Cape  Girardeau,  in  Missouri, 
as  a  confederate  force  under  General  Price  was  then  raiding 
that  state.  The  command  of  which  my  regiment  was  a  part 
hurried  to  the  front  to  intercept  Price,  and  our  first  fight 
with  him  occurred  at  Pilot  Knob.  From  that  time  for 
nearly  six  weeks  we  fought  or  skirmished  every  day. 

I  was  still  acting  as  a  scout,  when  one  day  I  rode  ahead 
of  the  command,  some  considerable  distance,  to  pick  up  all 
possible  information  concerning  Price's  movements.  I  was 
dressed  in  gray  clothes,  or  Missouri  jeans,  and  on  riding  up 
to  a  farm-house  and  entering,  I  saw  a  man,  also  dressed  in 
gray  costume,  sitting  at  a  table  eating  bread  and  milk.  He 
looked  up  as  I  entered,  and  startled  me  by  saying : 

"You  little  rascal,  what  are  you  doing  in  those  'secesh' 
clothes?"  Judge  of  my  surprise  when  I  recognized  in  the 
stranger  my  old  friend  and  partner,  Wild  Bill,  disguised  as  a 
Confederate  officer. 

"  I  ask  you  the  same  question,  sir,"  said  I  without  the  least 
hesitation. 

"Hush!  sit  down  and  have  some  bread  and  milk,  and 
we'll  talk  it  all  over  afterwards,"  said  he. 

I  accepted  the  invitation  and  partook  of  the  refreshments. 
Wild  Bill  paid  the  woman  of  the  house,  and  we  went  out  to 
the  gate  where  my  horse  was  standing. 

"  Billy,  my  boy,"  said  he,  "  I  am  mighty  glad  to  see  you. 


OUT  AS  A  SPY.  137 

I  haven't  seen  or  heard  of  you  since  we  got  busted  on  that 
St.  Louis'  horse-race." 

"  What  are  you  doing  out  here  ? "  I  asked. 

"I  am  a  scout  under  General  McNiel.  For  the  last  few 
days  I  have  been  with  General  Marmaduke's  division  of 
Price's  army,  in  disguise  as  a  southern  officer  from  Texas,  as 
you  see  me  now,"  said  he. 

"That's  exactly  the  kind  of  business  that  I  am  out  on  to- 
day," said  I ;  "  and  I  want  to  get  some  information  concern- 
ing Price's  movements." 

"  I'll  give  you  all  that  I  have ;"  and  he  then  went  on  and 
told  me  all  that  he  knew  regarding  Price's  intentions,  and 
the  number  and  condition  of  his  men.  lie  then  asked  about 
my  mother,  and  when  he  learned  that  she  was  dead  he  was 
greatly  surprised  and  grieved ;  he  thought  a  great  deal  of 
her,  for  she  had  treated  him  almost  as  one  of  her  own 
children.  He  finally  took  out  a  package,  which  he  had  con- 
cealed about  his  person,  and  handing  it  to  me  he  said  : 

"  Here  are  some  letters  which  I  want  you  to  give  to  Gen- 
eral McNiel." 

"All  right,"  said  I  as  I  took  them,  "but  where  will  I 
meet  you  again  ?  " 

"  Never  mind  that,"  he  replied  ;  "  I  am  getting  so  much 
valuable  information  that  I  propose  to  stay  a  little  while 
longer  in  this  disguise."  Thereupon  we  shook  hands  and 
parted. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  say  much  concerning  Price's  raid  in 
general,  as  that  event  is  a  matter  of  recorded  history.  I  am 
only  relating  the  incidents  in  which  I  was  personally  inter- 
ested either  as  one  of  the  actors  or  as  an  observer. 

Another  interesting  and  I  may  say  exciting  episode  hap- 
pened to  me  a  day  or  two  after  my  unexpected  meeting  with 
Wild  Bill.  I  was  riding  with  the  advance  guard  of  our 
army,  and  wishing  a  drink  of  water,  I  stopped  at  a  farm- 
house. There  were  no  men  about  the  premises,  and  no  one 
excepting  a  very  fine  and  intellectual  looking  lady  and  her 


138  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

two  daughters.  They  seemed  to  be  almost  frightened  to 
death  at  seeing  me — a  "yank" — appear  before  them.  I 
quieted  their  fears  somewhat,  and  the  mother  then  asked  me 
how  far  back  the  army  was.  When  1  told  her  it  would  be 
along  shortly,  she  expressed  her  fears  that  they  would  take 
everything  on  the  premises.  They  set  me  out  a  lunch  and 
treated  me  rather  kindly,  so  that  I  really  began  to  sympathize 
with  them ;  for  I  knew  that  the  soldiers  would  ransack  their 
liouse  and  confiscate  everything  they  could  lay  their  hands- 
on.  At  last' I  resolved  to  do  what  I  could  to  protect  them. 

After  the  generals  and  the  staff  officers  had  passed  by,  I 
took  it  upon  myself  to  be  a  sentry  over  the  house.  When 
the  command  came  along  some  of  the  men  rushed  up  with 
the  intention  of  entering  the  place  and  carrying  oft'  all  the 
desirable  plunder  possible,  and  then  tearing  and  breaking 
everything  to  pieces,  as  they  usually  did  along  the  line  of 
march. 

"  Halt ! "  I  shouted  ;  "  I  have  been  placed  here  by  the 
commanding  officer  as  a  guard  over  this  house,  and  no  man 
must  enter  it." 

This  stopped  the  first  squad  ;  and  seeing  that  my  plan 
was  a  success,  I  remained  at  my  post  during  the  passage  of 
the  entire  command  and  kept  out  all  intruders. 

It  seemed  as  if  the  ladies  could  not  thank  me  sufficiently 
for  the  protection  I  had  afforded  them.  They  were  per- 
fectly aware  of  the  fact  that  I  had  acted  without  orders  and 
entirely  on  my  own  responsibility,  and  therefore  they  felt 
the  more  grateful.  They  urgently  invited  me  to  remain  a 
little  while  longer  and  partake  of  an  excellent  dinner  which 
they  said  they  were  preparing  for  me.  I  was  pretty  hungry 
about  that  time,  as  our  rations  had  been  rather  slim  of  late, 
and  a  good  dinner  was  a  temptation  I  could  not  withstand, 
especially  as  it  was  to  be  served  up  by  such  elegant  ladies. 
While  I  was  eating  the  meal,  I  was  most  agreeably  enter- 
tained by  the  young  ladies,  and  before  I  had  finished  it  the 
last  of  the  rear-guard  must  have  been  at  least  two  miles  from 
the  house. 


A  FORTUNATE  ESCAPE.  139 

Suddenly  three  men  entered  the  room,  and  I  looked  up 
and  saw  three  double-barreled  shot-guns  leveled  straight  at 
me.  Before  I  could  speak,  however,  the  mother  and  her 
daughters  sprang  between  the  men  and  me. 

"  Father !  Boys  !  Lower  your  guns  !  You  must  not 
shoot  this  man,"  and  similar  exclamations,  were  the  cry  of 
all  three. 

The  guns  were  lowered,  and  then  the  men,  who  were  the 
father  and  brothers  of  the  young  ladies,  were  informed  of 
what  I  had  done  for  them.  It  appeared  that  they  had  been 
concealed  in  the  woods  near  by  while  the  army  was  passing,, 
and  on  coining  into  the  house  and  finding  a  Yankee  there,, 
they  determined  to  shoot  him.  Upon  learning  the  facts,  the 
old  man  extended  his  hand  to  me,  saying : 

"I  would  not  harm  a  hair  of  your  head  for  the  world ; 
but  it  is  best  that  you  stay  here  no  longer,  as  your  command 
is  some  distance  from  here  now,  and  you  might  be  cut  off  by 
bushwhackers  before  reaching  it." 

Bidding  them  all  good-bye,  and  with  many  thanks  from 
the  mother  and  daughters,  I  mounted  my  horse  and  soon 
overtook  the  column,  happy  in  the  thought  that  I  had  done 
a  good  deed,  and  with  no  regrets  that  I  had  saved  from  pil- 
lage and  destruction  the  home  and  property  of  a  confederate 
and  his  family. 

Our  command  kept  crowding  against  Price  and  his  army 
until  they  were  pushed  into  the  vicinity  of  Kansas  Cityy 
where  their  further  advance  was  checked  by  United  States- 
troops  from  Kansas;  and  then  was  begun  their  memorable 
and  extraordinary  retreat  back  into  Kansas. 

While  both  armies  were  drawn  up  in  skirmish  line  near 
Fort  Scott,  Kansas,  two  men  on  horseback  were  seen  rap- 
idly leaving  the  Confederate  lines,  and  suddenly  they  made 
a  dash  towards  us.  Instantly  quick  volleys  were  discharged 
from  the  Confederates,  who  also  began  a  pursuit,  and  some 
five  hundred  shots  were  fired  at  the  flying  men.  It  was  evi- 
dent that  they  were  trying  to  reach  our  lines,  but  when 


140  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

within  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  of  us,  one  of  them  fell 
from  his  horse  to  rise  no  more.  He  had  been  fatally  shot. 
His  companion  galloped  on  unhurt,  and  seven  companies  of 
our  regiment  charged  out  and  met  him,  and  checked  his 
pursuers.  The  fugitive  was  dressed  in  Confederate  uni- 
form, and  as  he  rode  into  our  lines  I  recognized  him  as 
Wild  Bill,  the  Union  scout.  He  immediately  sought  Gen- 
erals Pleasanton  and  McNiel,  with  whom  he  held  a  consult- 
ation. He  told  them  that  although  Price  made  a  bold  show- 
ing on  the  front,  by  bringing  all  his  men  into  view,  yet  he 
was  really  a  great  deal  weaker  than  the  appearance  of  his 
lines  would  indicate ;  and  that  he  was  then  trying  to  cross  a 
difficult  stream  four  miles  from  Fort  Scott. 

It  was  late  in  the  afternoon,  but  General  Pleasanton  im- 
mediately ordered  an  advance,  and  we  charged  in  full  force 
upon  the  rear  of  Price's  army,  and  drove  it  before  us  for 
two  hours. 

If  Wild  Bill  could  have  made  his  successful  dash  into  our 
lines  earlier  in  the  day,  the  attack  would  have  been  made 
sooner,  and  greater  results  might  have  been  expected.  The 
Confederates  had  suspected  him  of  being  a  spy  for  two  or 
three  days,  and  had  watched  him  too  closely  to  allow  an 
opportunity  to  get  away  from  them  sooner.  His  unfortu- 
nate companion  who  had  been  shot,  was  a  scout  from 
Springfield,  Missouri,  whose  name  I.  cannot  now  remember. 

From  this  time  on,  Wild  Bill  and  myself  continued  to 
scout  together  until  Price's  army  was  driven  south  of  the 
Arkansas  River  and  the  pursuit  abandoned.  We  then  re- 
turned to  Springfield,  Missouri,  for  a  rest  and  for  supplies, 
and  Wild  Bill  and  myself  spent  two  weeks  there  in  "  having 
a  jolly  good  time,"  as  some  people  would  express  it. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

A    WEDDING. 

IT  was  during  the  winter  of  1864-65,  while  I  was  on  de- 
tached service  at  military  headquarters,  at  St.  Louis,  that 
I  became  acquainted  with  a  young  lady  named  Louisa  Fred- 
erici,  whom  I  greatly  admired  and  in  whose  charming 
society  I  spent  many  a  pleasant  hour. 

The  war  closing  in  1865,  I  was  discharged,  and  after  a 
brief  visit  at  Leavenworth  I  returned  to  St.  Louis,  having 
made  up  my  mind  to  capture  the  heart  of  Miss  Frederici, 
whom  I  now  adored  above  any  other  young  lady  I  had  ever 
seen.  Her  lovely  face,  her  gentle  disposition  and  her  grace- 
ful manners  won  my  admiration  and  love  ;  and  I  was  not 
slow  in  declaring  my  sentiments  to  her.  The  result  was 
that  I  obtained  her  consent  to  marry  me  in  the  near  future, 
and  when  I  bade  her  good-bye  I  considered  myself  one  of 
the  happiest  of  men. 

Meantime  I  drove  a  string  of  horses  from  Leavenworth  to 
Fort  Kearney,  where  I  met  my  old  friend  Bill  Trotter,  who 
was  then  division  stage  agent.  He  employed  me  at  once  to 
drive  stage  between  Kearney  and  Plum  Creek,  the  road  run- 
ning near  the  spot  where  I  had  my  first  Indian  fight  with  the 
McCarthy  brothers,  and  where  I  killed  my  first  Indian, 
nearly  nine  years  before.  I  drove  stage  over  this  route  until 
February,  1866,  and  while  bounding  over  the  cold,  dreary 

'141 


142  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

road  day  after  day,  my  thoughts  turned  continually  towards 
my  promised  bride,  until  I  at  last  determined  to  abandon 
staging  forever,  and  marry  and  settle  down.  Immediately 
after  coming  to  this  conclusion,  I  went  to  St.  Louis,  where  I 
was  most  cordially  received  by  my  sweetheart ;  it  was 
arranged  between  us  that  our  wedding  should  take  place  on 
the  6th  day  of  March,  following. 

At  last  the  day  arrived,  and  the  wedding  ceremony  was 
performed  at  the  residence  of  the  bride's  parents,  in  the  pre- 
sence of  a  large  number  of  invited  friends,  whose  hearty 
congratulations  we  received.  I  was  certainly  to  be  congrat- 
ulated, for  I  had  become  possessed  of  a  lovely  and  noble 
woman,  and  as  I  gazed  upon  her  as  she  stood  beside  me 
arrayed  in  her  wedding  costume,  I  indeed  felt  proud  of 
her;  and  from  that  time  to  this  1  have  always  thought  that 
I  made  a  most  fortunate  choice  for  a  life  partner. 

An  hour  after  the  ceremony  we — my  bride  and  myself — 
were  on  board  of  a  Missouri  river  steamboat,  bound  for  our 
new  home  in  Kansas.  My  wife's  parents  had  accompanied 
us  to  the  boat,  and  had  bidden  us  a  fond  farewell  and  a  God- 
speed on  our  journey. 

During  the  trip  up  the  river  several  very  amusing,  yet  awk- 
ward incidents  occurred,  some  of  which  I  cannot  resist  relat- 
ing. There  happened  to  be  on  board  the  boat  an  excursion 
party  from  Lexington,  Missouri,  and  those  comprising  it 
seemed  to  shun  me,  for  some  reason  which  I  could  not  then 
account  for.  They  would  point  at  me,  and  quietly  talk 
among  themselves,  and  eye  me  very  closely.  Their  actions 
seemed  very  strange  to  me.  After  the  boat  had  proceeded 
some  little  distance,  I  made  the  acquaintance  of  several  fami- 
lies from  Indiana,  who  were  en  route  to  Kansas.  A  gentle- 
man, who  seemed  to  be  the  leader  of  these  colonists,  said  to 
me,  "  The  people  of  this  excursion  party  don't  seem  to  have 
any  great  love  for  you." 

"  What  does  it  mean  ?  "  I  asked  ;  "  What  are  they  saying? 
It's  all  a  mystery  to  me." 


INCIDENTS  OF  A  BRIDAL  TOUR.  143 

"  They  say  that  you  are  one  of  the  Kansas  jay-hawkers, 
and  ono  of  Jennison's  house  burners,"  replied  the  gentleman. 

"  I  am  from  Kansas — that's  true;  and  was  a  soldier  and  a 
scout  in  the  Union  army,"  said  I ;  "and  I  was  in  Kansas 
during  the  border  ruffian  war  of  1856.  Perhaps  these  peo- 
ple know  who  I  am,  and  that  explains  their  hard  looks."  I 
had  a  lengthy  conversation  with  this  gentleman — for  such 
he  seemed  to  be — and  entertained  him  with  several  chapters 
of  the  history  of  the  early  Kansas  troubles,  and  told  him 
the  experiences  of  my  own  family. 

In  the  evening  the  Lexington  folks  got  up  a  dance,  but 
neither  the  Indiana  people,  my  wife  or  myself  were  invited 
to  join  them.  My  new-found  friend  thereupon  came  to  me 
and  said  :  "Mr.  Cody,  let  us  have  a  dance  of  our  own." 

"Very  well,"  was  my  reply. 

"  We  have  some  musicians  along  with  us,  so  we  can  have 
plenty  of  music,"  remarked  the  gentleman. 

"  Good  enough  !  "  said  I,  "  and  I  will  hire  the  negro  bar- 
ber to  play  the  violin  for  us.  He  is  a  good  fiddler,  as  I 
heard  him  playing  only  a  little  while  ago."  The  result  was 
that  we  soon  organized  a  good  string  band  and  had  a  splen- 
did dance,  keeping  it  up  as  long  as  the  Lexington  party  did 
theirs. 

The  second  day  out  from  St.  Louis,  the  boat  stopped  to 
wood  up,  at  a  wild-looking  landing.  Suddenly  twenty  horse- 
men were  seen  galloping  up  through  the  timber,  and  as 
they  came  nearer  the  boat  they  fired  on  the  negro  deck- 
hands, against  whom  they  seemed  to  have  a  special  grudge, 
and  who  were  engaged  in  throwing  wood  on  board.  The 
negroes  all  quickly  jumped  on  the  boat  and  pulled  in  the 
gang-plank,  and  the  captain  had  only  just  time  to  get  the 
steamer  out  into  the  stream  before  the  bushwhackers — for 
such  they  proved  to  be — appeared  on  the  bank. 

"  "Where  is  the  black  abolition  jay -hawker  ? "  shouted  the 
leader. 

"  Show  him  to  us,  and  we'll  shoot  him,"  yelled  another. 


144  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

But  as  the  boat  had  got  well  out  in  the  river  by  this  time, 
they  could  not  board  us,  and  the  captain  ordering  a  full  head 
of  steam,  pulled  out  and  left  them. 

I  afterwards  ascertained  that  some  of  the  Missourians,  who 
were  with  the  excursion  party,  were  bushwhackers  them- 
selves, and  had  telegraphed  to  their  friends  from  some  pre- 
vious landing  that  I  was  on  board,  telling  them  to  come  to- 
the  landing  which  we  had  just  left,  and  take  me  off.  Had 
the  villains  captured  me  they  would  have  undoubtedly  put 
an  end  to  my  career,  and  the  public  would  never  have  had 
the  pleasure  of  being  bored  by  this  autobiography. 

I  noticed  that  my  wife  felt  grieved  over  the  manner  in 
which  these  people  had  treated  me.  Just  married,  she  was 
going  into  a  new  country,  and  seeing  how  her  hueband  wa& 
regarded,  how  he  had  been  shunned,  and  how  his  life  had  been 
threatened,  I  was  afraid  she  might  come  to  the  conclusion 
too  soon  that  she  had  wedded  a  "  hard  customer."  So  when 
the  boat  landed  at  Kansas  City  I  telegraphed  to  some  of  my 
friends  in  Leavenworth  that  I  would  arrive  there  in  the  even- 
ing. My  object  was  to  have  my  acquaintances  give  me  a  re- 
ception, so  that  my  wife  could  see  that  I  really  did  have 
some  friends,  and  was  not  so  bad  a  man  as  the  bushwhackers 
tried  to  make  out. 

Just  as  I  expected,  when  the  boat  reached  Leavenworth,  I 
found  a  general  round-up  of  friends  at  the  landing  to  receive 
us.  There  were  about  sixty  gentlemen  and  ladies.  They 
had  a  band  of  music  with  them,  and  we  were  given  a  fine 
serenade.  Taking  carriages,  we  all  drove  to  South  Leaven- 
worth to  the  home  of  my  sister  Eliza,  who  had  married 
George  Myers,  and  there  we  were  given  a  very  handsome 
reception.  All  this  cheered  up  my  wife,  who  concluded  that 
I  was  not  a  desperado  after  all. 

Having  promised  my  wife  that  I  would  abandon  the 
plains,  I  rented  a  hotel  in  Salt  Creek  Yalley — the  same  house 
by  the  way,  which  my  mother  had  formerly  kept,  but  which 
was  then  owned  by  Dr.  J.  J.  Crook,  late  surgeon  of  the  7th 


KEEPING  A  HOTEL.  145 

Kansas.  This  hotel  I  called  the  Golden  Eule  House,  and  I 
kept  it  until  the  next  September.  People  generally  said  I 
made  a  good  landlord,  and  knew  how  to  run  a  hotel — a  busi- 
ness qualification  which,  it  is  said,  is  possessed  by  compara- 
tively few  men.  But  it  proved  too  tame  employment  for 
me,  and  again  I  sighed  for  the  freedom  of  the  plains.  Be- 
lieving that  I  could  make  more  money  out  West  on  the 
frontier  than  I  could  at  Salt  Creek  Valley,  I  sold  out  the 
Golden  Rule  House,  and  started  alone  for  Saline,  Kansas,, 
which  was  then  the  end  of  the  track  of  the  Kansas  Pacific 
railway,  which  was  at  that  time  being  built  across  the  plains. 
On  my  way  I  stopped  at  Junction  City,  where  I  again  met 
my  old  friend  Wild  Bill,  who  was  scouting  for  the  govern- 
ment ;  his  headquarters  being  at  Fort  Ellsworth,  afterwards- 
called  Fort  Harker.  He  told  me  that  they  needed  more 
scouts  at  this  post,  and  I  accordingly  accompanied  him  to> 
that  fort,  where  Iliad  no  difficulty  in  obtaining  employment. 

During  the  winter  of  1866-67,  I  scouted  between  Fort 
Ellsworth  and  Fort  Fletcher.  In  the  spring  of  186T  I  was- 
at  Fort  Fletcher,  when  General  Custer  came  out  to  go  on  an 
Indian  expedition  with  General  Hancock.  I  remained  at 
this  post  until  it  was  drowned  out  by  the  heavy  floods  of 
Big  Creek,  on  which  it  was  located ;  the  water  rose  about 
the  fortifications  and  rendered  the  place  unfit  for  occupancy; 
so  the  government  abandoned  the  fort,  and  moved  the  troops 
and  supplies  to  a  new  post — which  had  been  named  Fort 
Hays — located  further  west,  on  the  south  fork  of  Big  Creek. 
It  was  while  scouting  in  the  vicinity  of  Fort  Hays  that  I 
had  my  first  ride  with  the  dashing  and  gallant  Custer,  who 
had  come  up  to  the  post  from  Fort  Ellsworth  writh  an  escort 
of  only  ten  men.  He  wanted  a  guide  to  pilot  him  to  Fort 
Lamed,  a  distance  of  sixty-five  miles  across  the  country. 

I  was  ordered  by  the  commanding  officer  to  guide  Gen- 
eral Custer  to  his  desired  destination,  and  I  soon  received 
word  from  the  General  that  he  would  start  out  in  the 


146  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

morning  with  the  intention  of  making  the  trip  in  one  day. 
Early  in  the  morning,  after  a  good  night's  rest,  I  was  on 
hand,  mounted  on  my  large  mouse-colored  mule — an  animal 
of  great  endurance — and  ready  for  the  journey  ;  when  the 
General  saw  me,  he  said : 

u  Cody,  I  want  to  travel  fast  and  go  through  as  quickly  as 
possible,  and  I  don't  think  that  mule  of  yours  is  fast  enough 
to  suit  me." 

"  General,  never  mind  the  mule,"  said  I,  "  he'll  get 
there  as  soon  as  your  horses.  That  mule  is  a  good  one,"  as 
I  knew  that  the  animal  was  better  than  most  horses. 

"  Yery  well ;  go  ahead,  then,"  said  he,  though  he  looked 
as  if  he  thought  I  would  delay  the  party  on  the  road. 

For  the  first  fifteen  miles,  until  we  came  to  the  Smoky 
Hill  River,  which  we  were  to  cross,  I  could  hardly  keep  the 
mule  in  advance  of  the  General,  who  rode  a  frisky,  impa- 
tient and  ambitious  thoroughbred  steed;  in  fact,  the  whole 
party  was  finely  mounted.  The  General  repeatedly  told  me 
that  the  mule  was  "no  good,"  and  that  I  ought, to  have  had 
a  good  horse.  But  after  crossing  the  river  and  striking  the 
sand-hills,  I  began  letting  my  mule  out  a  little,  and  putting 
the  "  persuaders "  to  him.  He  was  soon  out-traveling  the 
horses,  and  by  the  time  we  had  made  about  half  the  distance 
to  Fort  Earned,  I  occasionally  had  to  wait  for  the  General 
or  some  of  his  party,  as  their  horses  were  beginning  to  show 
signs  of  fatigue. 

"  General,  how  about  this  mule,  anyhow  ?  "  I  asked,  at 
last. 

"  Cody,  you  have  a  better  vehicle  than  I  thought  you 
had,"  was  his  reply. 

From  that  time  on  to  Fort  Lamed  I  had  no  trouble  in 
keeping  ahead  of  the  party.  We  rode  into  the  fort  at  four 
o'clock  in  the  afternoon  with  about  half  the  escort  only,  the 
rest  having  lagged  far  behind. 

General    Custer   thanked    me   for  having   brought    him 


MY  FIRST  RIDE  WITH  CUSTER. 


147 


straight  across  the  country  without  any  trail,  and  said  that 

if  I  were  not  engaged  as 
post  scout  at  Fort  Hays 
he  would  like  to  have  me 
accompany  him  as  one  of 
his  scouts  during  the  sum- 
mer; and  he  added  that 
whenever  I  was  out  of 
employment,  if  I  would 
come  to  him  he  would 
tind  something  for  me  to 
do.  This  was  the  begin- 
ning of  my  acquaintance 
with  General  Ouster, 
whom  I  always  admired 
GENERAL  CUSTER.  as  a  man  and  as  an  officer. 

A  few  days  after  my  return  to  Fort  Hays,  the  Indians 
made  a  raid  on  the  Kansas  Pacific  Railroad,  killing  five  or 
six  men  and  running  off  about  one  hundred  horses  and 
mules.  The  news  was  brought  to  the  commanding  officer, 
who  immediately  ordered  Major  Arms,  of  the  Tenth  Cav- 
alry— which,  by  the  way,  was  a  negro  regiment, — with  his 
company  and  one  mountain  howitzer,  to  go  in  pursuit  of  the 
red-skins,  and  I  was  sent  along  with  the  expedition  as  scout 
and  guide.  On  the  second  day  out  we  suddenly  discovered, 
on  the  opposite  side  of  the  Saline  River,  about  a  mile  dis- 
tant, a  large  body  of  Indians,  who  were  charging  down  upon 
us.  Major  Arms,  placing  the  cannon  on  a  little  knoll,  lim- 
bered it  up  and  left  twenty  men  to  guard  it ;  and  then,  with 
the  rest  of  the  command,  he  crossed  the  river  to  meet  the 
Indians. 

Just  as  he  had  got  the  men  over  the  stream,  we  heard  a 
terrific  yelling  and  shouting  in  our  rear,  and  looking  back  to 
the  knoll  where  the  cannon  had  been  stationed,  we  saw  the 
negroes,  who  had  been  left  there  to  guard  the  gun,  flying 
towards  us,  being  pursued  by  about  one  hundred  Indians ; 
9 


148  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

while  another  large  party  of  the  latter  were  dancing  around 
the  captured  cannon,  as  if  they  had  got  hold  of  an  elephant 
and  did  not  know  what  to  do  with  it. 

Major  Arms  turned  his  command  back  and  drove  the 
Indians  from  the  gun.  The  troops  then  dismounted  and 
took  position  there.  Quite  a  severe  fight  ensued,  lasting 
about  two  hours.  Five  or  six  of  the  soldiers,  as  well  aa 
Major  Arms,  were  wounded,  and  several  of  the  horses  were 
shot.  The  Indians  seemed  to  grow  thicker  and  thicker,  as 
if  receiving  reinforcements  from  some  large  party.  The 
colored  troops,  who  had  been  bragging  all  the  way  that  if 
they  could  only  see  some  Indians  "  dey  would  blow  'em  off 
de  farm," — which  was  a  favorite  expression  of  theirs, — were 
now  singing  a  different  tune.  Every  time  the  Indians  would 
make  a  charge  at  us,  the  darkeys  wrould  cry  out  : 

"  Ileah  dey  cum  ;  "  "  Dey  must  be  ten  thousand  ob  'em  ; " 
"De  whole  country  is  alive  wid  'em;"  "Massa  Bill,  does 
you  tink  we  is  eber  agoin'  to  get  out  o?  lieah  ? "  and  many 
other  similar  expressions. 

Major  Arms,  who  was  wounded  and  lying  under  the 
cannon — which,  by  the  way,  had  become  useless, — called  me 
up  and  asked  if  I  thought  there  was  any  show  of  getting 
back  to  the  fort.  I  replied  that  there  was. 

Orders  were  accordingly  given  by  Major  Arms  for  a  re- 
treat, the  cannon  being  left  behind.  During  the  move- 
ment several  of  our  men  were  killed,  but  as  night  came  and 
dense  darkness  prevailed,  we  succeeded  in  making  good 
headway,  and  got  into  Fort  Hays  just  at  daylight  next  morn- 
ing, in  a  very  played-out  condition. 

During  our  absence  the  cholera  had  broken  out  at  the  post, 
and  five  or  six  men  were  dying  daily.  It  was  difficult  to  tell 
which  was  the  greater  danger — fighting  Indians  on  the 
prairie,  or  facing  the  cholera  in  camp;  but  the  former  was 
decidedly  the  more  inviting. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

A    MILLIONAIRE. 

SOON  after  returning  to  Fort  Hays,  I  was  sent  with  dis- 
patches to  Fort  Marker.  After  delivering  the  messages, 
I  visited  the  town  of  Ellsworth,  about  three  miles  west  of 
Fort  Harker,  and  there  1  met  a  man  named  William  Rose, 
a  contractor  on  the  Kansas  Pacific  Railroad,  who  had  a  con- 
tract for  grading  near  Fort  Hays.  He  had  had  his  stock 
stolen  by  the  Indians,  and  had  come  to  Ellsworth  to  buy  more. 

During  the  course  of  our  conversation.  Mr.  Rose  inci- 
dentally remarked  that  he  had  some  idea  of  laying  out  a 
town  on  the  west  side  of  Big  Creek,  about  one  mile  from 
the  fort,  where  the  railroad  was  to  cross.  He  asked  my 
opinion  of  the  contemplated  enterprise,  and  I  told  him  that 
I  thought  it  was  "  a  big  thing."  He  then  proposed  taking 
me  as  a  partner  in  the  scheme,  and  suggested  that  after  we 
got  the  town  laid  out  and  thrown  open  to  the  public,  we 
should  establish  a  store  and  saloon  there. 

Thinking  it  would  be  a  grand  thing  to  be  half-owner  of  a 
town,  I  at  once  accepted  his  proposition.  We  bought  a 
stock  of  such  articles  as  are  usually  found  in  a  frontier  store, 
and  transported  them  to  the  place  on  Big  Creek,  where  we 
were  to  found  our  town.  We  hired  a  railroad  engineer  to 
survey  the  site  and  stake  it  off  into  lots;  and  we  gave  the 
new  town  the  ancient  and  historical  name  of  Rome.  To 

149 


150  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

a  "starter,"  we  donated  lots  to  any  one  who  would  build  on 
them,  but  reserved  the  corner  lots  and  others  which  were 
best  located  for  ourselves.  These  reserved  lots  we  valued 
at  fifty  dollars  each. 

Our  modern  Rome,  like  all  mushroom  towns. along  the 
line  of  a  new  railroad,  sprang  up  as  if  by  magic,  and  in  less 
than  one  month  we  had  two  hundred  frame  and  log  houses, 
three  or  four  stores,  several  saloons,  and  one  good  hotel. 
Rome  was  looming  up,  and  Rose  and  I  already  considered 
ourselves  millionaires,  and  thought  we  "had  the  world  by 
the  tail."  But  one  day  a  fine-looking  gentleman,  calling 
himself  Dr.  W.  E.  Webb,  appeared  in  town,  and  dropping 
into  our  store  introduced  himself  in  a  very  pleasant  way. 

"Gentlemen,  you've  got  a  very  flourishing  little  town 
here.  Wouldn't  you  like  to  have  a  partner  in  your  enter- 
prise ? " 

"  No,  thank  you,"  said  I,  "  we  have  too  good  a  thing  here 
to  whack  up  with  anybody." 

My  partner  agreed  wit^i  me,  but  the  conversation  was 
continued,  and  at  last  the  stranger  said  : 

"  Gentlemen,  I  am  the  agent  or  prospector  of  the  Kansas 
Pacific  Railroad,  and  my  business  is  to  locate  towns  for  the 
company  along  the  line." 

"We  think  we  have  the  only  suitable  town-site  in  this 
immediate  locality,"  said  Mr.  Rose,  "and  as  a  town  is 
already  started,  we  have  saved  the  company  considerable 
expense." 

"You  know  as  well  as  I  do,"  said  Dr.  Webb,  "'that  the 
company  expects  to  make  money  by  setting  lands  and  town 
lots ;  and  as  you  are  not  disposed  to  give  the  company  a 
show,  or  share  with  me,  I  shall  probably  have  to  start  another 
town  near  you.  Competition  is  the  life  of  trade,  you  know." 

"Start  your  town,  if  you  want  to.  We've  got  the4  bulge' 
on  you,  and  can  hold  it."  said  I,  somewhat  provoked  at  his 
threat. 

But  we  acted  too  independently  and  too  indiscreetly  for 


DEPARTING  RICHES. 


151 


our  own  good  Dr.  Webb, 
the  very  next  day  after  his 
interview  with  u^,  began 
hauling  material  to  a  spot 
about  one  mile  east  of  us, 
where  he  staked  out  a  new 
town,  which  he  called  Hays 
City.  He  took  great  pains 
to  circulate  i  n  our  town 
the  story  that  the  railroad 
company  would  locate  their 
round-houses  and  machine 
shops  at  Plays  City,  and 
that  it  was  to  be  the  town 
and  a  splendid  business 
center.  A  ruinous  stam- 
pede from  our  place  was 
the  result.  People  w  li  o 
had  built  in  Rome  came  to 
the  conclusion  that  they 
had  built  in  the  wrong 
place;  they  began  pulling 
down  their  buildings  and 

C5 

moving  them  over  to  Hays 
City,  and  in  less  than  three 
days  our  once  flourishing 
city  had  dwindled  down  to 
the  little  store  which  Rose 
and  I  had  built. 

1 1  was  on  a  bright 
summer  morning  that  we 
sat  on  a  pine  box  in  front 
of  our  crib,  moodily  view- 
ing the  demolition  of  the 
last  building.  Three  days 
before,  we  had  considered 


r:::: 


152  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

ourselves  millionaires ;  on  that  morning  we  looked  around 
and  saw  that  we  were  reduced  to  the  ragged  edge  of  poverty. 
Our  sanguine  expectations  of  realizing  immense  fortunes  were 
dashed  to  the  ground,  and  we  felt  pretty  blue.  The  new 
town  of  Hays  had  swallowed  Rome  entirely.  Mr.  Rose 
facetiously  remarked  that  he  felt  like  "  the  last  rose  of  sum- 
mer," with  all  his  lovely  companions  faded  and  gone,  and 
he  left  blooming  alone.  I  told  him  I  was  still  there,  staunch 
and  true,  but  he  replied  that  that  didn't  help  the  matter 
much.  Thus  ends  the  brief  history  of  the  "  Rise,  Decline  and 
Fall  "  of  Modern  Rome. 

It  having  become  evident  to  me  that  there  was  very  little 
hope  of  Rome  ever  regaining  its  former  splendor  and  pros- 
perity, I  sent  my  wife  and  daughter  Arta — who  had  been 
born  at  Leavenworth  in  the  latter  part  of  December,  1866 — 
to  St.  Louis  on  a  visit.  Tl^ey  had  been  living  with  me  for 
some  little  time  in  the  rear  part  of  our  "  store." 

At  this  time  Mr.  Rose  and  myself  had  a  contract  under 
Schumacher,  Miller  &  Co.,  constructors  of  the  Kansas  Pacific, 
for  grading  five  miles  of  track  westward  from  Big  Creek, 
and  running  through  the  site  of  Rome.  Notwithstanding 
we  had  been  deserted,  we  had  some  small  hope  that  they 
would  not  be  able  to  get  water  at  the  new  town,  and  that 
the  people  would  all  soon  move  back  to  Rome,  as  we  really 
had  the  best  location.  We  determined,  therefore,  to  go  on 
with  our  grading  contract,  and  wait  for  something  better  to 
turn  up.  It  was  indeed  hard  for  us,  who  had  been  million- 
aires, to  come  down  to  the  level  of  common  railroad  con- 
tractors— but  we  had  to  do  it,  all  the  same. 

We  visited  the  new  town  of  Hays  almost  daily,  to  see  how 
it  was  progressing,  and  in  a  short  time  we  became  much  bet- 
ter .acquainted  with  Dr.  Webb,  who  had  reduced  us  from  our 
late  independent  to  our  present  dependent  position.  We 
found  him  a  perfect  gentleman — a  whole-souled,  genial- 
hearted  fellow,  whom  everybody  liked  and  respected. 
Nearly  every  day,  "  Doc."  and  I  would  take  a  ride  over 
the  prairie  together  and  hunt  buffalo. 


DOC.  AND  I  HAVE  A  RUN.  153 

On  one  occasion,  having  ventured  about  ten  miles  from 
the  town,  we  spied  a  band  of  Indians  not  over  two  miles 
distant,  who  were  endeavoring  to  get  between  us  and  the 
town,  and  thus  cut  us  off.  I  was  mounted  on  my  celebrated 
horse  Brigham,  the  fleetest  steed  I  ever  owned.  On  several 
subsequent  occasions  he  saved  my  life,  and  he  was  the  horse 
that  I  rode  when  I  killed  sixty-nine  buffaloes  in  one  day. 
Dr.  Webb  was  riding  a  beautiful  thoroughbred  bay,  which 
he  had  brought  with  him  from  the  East.  Having  such 
splendid  horses,  we  laughed  at  the  idea  of  a  band  of  Indians 
overtaking  us  on  a  square  run,  no  matter  how  well  they 
might  be  mounted ;  but  not  caring  to  be  cut  off  by  them,  we 
ran  our  steeds  about  three  miles  towards  home,  thus  getting 
between  the  braves  and  the  town.  The  Indians  were  then 
about  three-quarters  of  a  mile  distant,  and  we  stopped  and 
waved  our  hats  at  them,  and  fired  some  shots  at  long  range. 
There  were  thirteen  in  the  party,  and  as  they  were  getting 
pretty  close  to  us,  we  struck  out  for  Hays.  They  came  on 
in  pursuit  and  sent' several  scattering  shots  after  us,  but  we 
easily  left  them  behind.  They  finally  turned  and  rode  off 
towards  the  Saline  River. 

The  Doctor  thought  this  glorious  sport,  and  wanted  to 
organize  a  party  to  go  in  pursuit  of  them,  but  I  induced 
him  to  give  up  this  idea,  although  he  did  so  rather  reluct- 
antly. The  Doctor  soon  became  quite  an  expert  hunter,  and 
before  he  had  remained  on  the  prairie  a  year  there  were  but 
few  men  in  the  country  who  could  kill  more  buffaloes  on  a 
hunt  than  he. 

Being  aware  that  Rose  and  myself  felt  rather  down- 
hearted over  our  deserted  village,  the  Doctor  one  day  said 
that,  as  he  had  made  the  proprietors  of  Rome  "  howl,"  he 
would  give  us  two  lots  each  in  Hays,  and  did  so.  We  finally 
came  to  the  conclusion  that  our  old  town  was  dead  beyond 
redemption  or  revival,  and  we  thereupon  devoted  our  un- 
divided attention  to  our  railroad  contract.  One  day  we 
were  pushed  for  horses  to  work  on  our  scrapers — so  I 


154  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

hitched  up  Brigham,  to  see  how  he  would  work.  He  was 
not  much  used  to  that  kind  of  labor,  and  I  was  about  giving 
up  the  idea  of  making  a  work-horse  of  him,  when  one  of  the 
men  called  to  me  that  there  were  some  buffaloes  coming 
over  the  hill.  As  there  had  been  no  buffaloes  seen  any- 
where in  the  vicinity  of  the  camp  for  several  days,  we  had 
become  rather  short  of  meat.  I  immediately  told  one  of 
our  men  to  hitch  his  horses  to  a  wagon  and  follow  me,  as 
I  was  going  out  after  the  herd,  and  we  would  bring  back 
some  fresh  meat  for  supper.  I  had  no  saddle,  as  mine  had 
been  left  at  the  camp  a  mile  distant,  so  taking  the  harness 
from  Brigham,  I  mounted  him  bareback  and  started  out 
after  the  game,  being  armed  with  my  celebrated  buffalo- 
killer,  "  Lucretia  Bor'gia," — a  newly-improved  breech-loading 
needle  gun,  which  I  had  obtained  from  the  government. 

While  I  was  riding  toward  the  buffaloes  I  obseived  five 
horsemen  coming  out  from  the  fort,  who  had  evidently  seen 
the  buffaloes  from  the  post,  and  were  going  out  for  a  chase. 
They  proved  to  be  some  newly-arrived  officers  in  that  part 
of  the  country,  and  when  they  came  up  closer,  I  could  see 
by  the  shoulder  straps  that  the  senior  officer  was  a  captain, 
while  the  others  were  lieutenants. 

"  Hello !  may  friend,"  sang  out  the  captain,  "  I  see  you  are 
after  the  same  game  we  are." 

"  Yes,  sir;  I  saw  those  buffaloes  coming  over  the  hill,  and 
as  we  were  about  out  of  fresh  meat  I  thought  I  would  go> 
and  get  some,"  said  I. 

They  scanned  my  cheap-looking  outfit  pretty  closely,  and  as 
my  horse  was  not  very  prepossessing  in  appearance,  having  on 
only  a  blind  bridle,  and  otherwise  looking  like  a  work-horse 
they  evidently  considered  me  a  green  hand  at  hunting. 

"  Do  you  expect  to  catch  those  buffaloes  on  that  Gothic 
steed  ?"  laughingly  asked  the  captain. 

UI  hope  so,  by  pushing  on  the  reins  hard  enough,"  was 
my  reply. 

"  You'll  never  catch  them  in  the  world,  my  fine  fellow," 


CAPT.  GRAHAM'S  BUFFALO  HUNT.  155 

said  the  captain.     "  It  requires  -a  fast  horse  to  overtake  the 
animals  on  these  prairies." 

"  Does  it  ?  "  asked  I  as  if  I  didn't  know  it. 

"  Yes ;  but  come  along  with  us  as  we  are  going  to  kill 
them  more  for  pleasure  than  anything  else.  All  we  want 
are  the  tongues  and  a  piece  of  tender  loin,  and  you  may  have 
all  that  is  left,"  said  the  generous  man. 

"  I  am  much  obliged  to  you,  Captain,  and  will  follow  you,"" 
I  replied. 

There  were  eleven  buffaloes  in  the  herd  and  they  were  not 
more  than  a  mile  from  us.  The  officers  dashed  ahead  as  if 
they  had  a  sure  thing  on  killing  them  all  before  I  could 
come  up  with  them ;  but  I  had  noticed  that  the  herd  was- 
making  towards  the  creek  for  water,  and  as  I  knew  buffalo- 
nature,  I  was  perfectly  aware  that  it  would  be  difficult  to 
turn  them  from  their  direct  course.  Thereupon,  I  started 
towards  the  creek  to  head  them  off,  while  the  officers  came 
up  in  the  rear  and  gave  chase. 

The  buffaloes  came  rushing  past  me  not  a  hundred  yards- 
'distant,  with  the  officers  about  three  hundred  yards  in  the 
rear.  Now,  thought  I,  is  the  time  to  "  get  my  work  in,"  as- 
they  say ;  and  I  pulled  the  blind-bridle  from  my  horse,  who 
knew  as  well  as  I  did  that  we  were  out  for  buffaloes — as  he 
was  a  trained  hunter.  The  moment  the  bridle  was  off,  he 
started  at  the  top  of  his  speed,  running  in  ahead  of  the 
officers,  and  with  a  few  jumps  he  brought  me  alongside  of 
the  rear  buffalo.  Raising  old  "Lucretia  Borgia "  to  my 
shoulder,  I  fired,  and  killed  the  animal  at  the  first  shot.  My 
horse  then  carried  me  alongside  the  next' one,  not  ten  feet 
away,  and  I  dropped  him  at  the  next  fire. 

As  soon  as  one  buffalo  would  fall,  Brigham  would  take  me 
so  close  to  the  next,  that  I  could  almost  touch  it  with  my 
gun.  In  this  manner  I  killed  the  eleven  buffaloes  with 
twelve  shots ;  and,  as  the  last  animal  dropped,  my  horse 
stopped.  I  jumped  to  the  ground,  knowing  that  he  would 
not  leave  me — it  must  be  remembered  that  I  had  been  riding 


156 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


him  without  bridle,  reins  or  saddle- — and  turning  round  as 
the  party  of  astonished  officers  rode  up,I  said  to  them  : 

"Now,  gentlemen,  allow  me  to  present  to  you  all  the 
tongues  and  tender-loins  you  wish  from  these  buffaloes." 


TONGUES    AND   TENDER   LOINS. 


Captain  Graham,  for  such  I  soon  learned  was  his  name, 
replied  :  "  Well,  I  never  s*aw  the  like  before.  Who  under 
the  sun  are  you,  anyhow  ?  " 

"  My  name  is  Cody,"  said  I. 

One  of  the  lieutenants,  Thompson  by  name,  who  had  met 
me  at  Fort  Barker,  then  recognized  me,  and  said  :  "  Why, 
that  is  Bill  Cody,  our  old  scout."  He  then  introduced  me  to 
the  other  officers,  who  were  Captain  Graham,  of  the  Tenth 
Cavalry,  and  Lieutenants  Reed,  Emmick  and  Ezekiel. 

Captain  Graham,  who  was  considerable  of  a  horseman, 
greatly  admired  Brigharn,  and  said :  "  That  horse  of  yours 
has  running  points." 


BRIGHAM'S  POINTS.  157 

"  Yes,  sir ;  he  has  not  only  got  the  points,  he  is  a  runner 
and  knows  how  to  use  the  points,"  said  I. 

"  So  I  noticed,"  said  the  captain. 

They  all  finally  dismounted,  and  we  continued  chatting 
for  some  little  time  upon  the  different  subjects  of  horses, 
buffaloes,  Indians  and  hunting.  They  felt  a  little  sore  at  not 
getting  a  single  shot  at  the  buffaloes,  but  the  way  I  had  kill- 
ed them  had,  they  said,  amply  repaid  them  for  their  disap- 
pointment. They  had  read  of  such  feats  in  books,  but  this 
was  the  first  time  they  had  ever  seen  anything  of  the  kind 
with  their  own  eyes.  It  was  the  first  time,  also,  that  they 
had  ever  witnessed  or  heard  of  a  white  man  running  buffa- 
loes on  horseback  without  a  saddle  or  a  bridle. 

I  told  them  that  Brigham  knew  nearly  as  much  about  the 
business  as  I  did,  and  if  I  had  had  twenty  bridles  they 
would  have  been  of  no  use  to  me,  as  he  understood  every- 
thing, and  all  that  he  expected  of  me  was  to  do  the  shooting. 
It  is  a  fact,  that  Brigham  would  stop  if  a  buffalo  did  not  fall 
at  the  first  fire,  so  as  to  give  me  a  second  chance,  but  if  I 
did  not  kill  the  buffalo  then,  he  would  go  on,  as  if  to  say, 
"  You  are  no  good,  and  I  will  not  fool  away  time  by  giving 
you  more  than  two  shots."  Brigham  was  the  best  horse  I 
ever  owned  or  saw  for  buffalo  chasing. 

Our  conversation  was  interrupted  in  a  little  while  by  the 
arrival  of  the  wagon  which  I  had  ordered  out ;  I  loaded  the 
hind-quarters  of  the  youngest  buffaloes  on  it,  and  then  cut 
out  the  tongues  and  tender  loins,  and  presented  them  to  the 
officers,  after  which  I  rode  towards  the  fort  with  them,  while 
the  wagon  returned  to  camp. 

Captain  Graham  told  me  that  he  expected  to  be  stationed 
at  Fort  Hays  during  the  summer,  and  would  probably  be 
sent  out  on  a  scouting  expedition,  and  in  case  he  was  he 
would  like  to  have  me  accompany  him  as  scout  and  guide. 
I  replied  that  notwithstanding  I  was  very  busy  with  rny 
railroad  contract  I  would  go  with  him  if  he  was  ordered 
out.  I  then  left  the  officers  and  returned  to  our  camp. 


158  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

That  very  night  the  Indians  unexpectedly  made  a  raid  on 
the  horses,  and  ran  off  five  or  six  of  our  very  best  work- 
teams,  leaving  us  in  a  very  crippled  condition.  At  daylight 
I  jumped  on  old  Brigham  and  rode  to  Fort  Hays,  when  I 
reported  the  affair  to  the  commanding  officer ;  Captain  Gra- 
ham and  Lieutenant  Emmick  were  at  once  ordered  out  with 
their  company  of  one  hundred  colored  troops,  to  pursue  the 
Indians  and  recover  our  stock  if  possible.  In  an  hour  we 
were  under  way.  The  darkies  had  never  been  in  an  Indian 
fight  and  were  anxious  to  catch  the  band  we  were  after  and 
"  Sweep  de  red  debels  from  off  de  face  ob  de  earth."  Cap- 
tain Graham  was  a  brave,  dashing  officer,  eager  to  make  a 
record  for  himself,  and  it  was  with  difficulty  that  I  could 
trail  fast  enough  to  keep  out  of  the  way  of  the  impatient 
soldiers.  Every  few  moments  Captain  Graham  would  ride 
up  to  see  if  the  trail  was  freshening  and  how  soon  we  should 
be  likely  to  overtake  the  thieves. 

At  last  we  reached  the  Saline  river,  where  we  found  the 
Indians  had  only  stopped  to  feed  and  water  the  animals,  and 
had  then  pushed  on  towards  the  Solomon.  After  crossing 
the  Saline  they  made  no  effort  to  conceal  their  trail,  thinking 
they  would  not  be  pursued  beyond  that  point — consequently 
we  were  able  to  make  excellent  time.  We  reached  the  Solo- 
man  before  sunset,  and  came  to  a  halt ;  we  surmised  that  if 
the  Indians  were  camped  on  this  river,  that  they  had  no  sus- 
picion of  our  being  in  the  neighborhood.  I  advised  Captain 
Graham  to  remain  with  the  company  where  it  was,  while  I 
went  ahead  on  a  scout  to  find  the  Indians,  if  they  were  in 
the  vicinity. 

After  riding  some  distance  down  the  ravine  that  led  to 
the  river,  I  left  my  horse  at  the  foot  of  a  hill  ;  then,  creeping 
to  the  top,  I  looked  cautiously  over  the  summit  upon  the 
Solomon,  below.  1  at  once  discovered  in  plain  view,  not  a 
mile  away,  a  herd  of  horses  grazing,  our  lost  ones  among 
them ;  very  shortly  1  made  out  the  Indian  camp,  noted  its 
lay,  and  how  we  could  best  approach  it.  Keporting  to 


A  WELL  LAID  PLAN. 


159 


Captain  Graham,  whose  eyes  fairly  danced  with  delight  at 
the  prospect  of  surprising  and  whipping  the  redskins,  we 
concluded  to  wait  until  the  moon  rose,  then  get  into  the  tim- 
ber so  as  to  approach  the  Indians  as  closely  as  possible  with- 
out being  discovered,  and  finally  to  make  a  sudden  dash  into 
their  camp,  and  clean  them  out.  We  had  everything  "  cut 
and  dried,"  as  we  thought,  but,  alas !  just  as  we  were  near- 
ing  the  point  where  we  were  to  take  the  open  ground  and 


THU    INDIAN    HORSE    THIEVES. 


make  our  charge,  one  of  the  colored  gentlemen  became  so 
excited  that  he  fired  off  his  gun.  We  immediately  com- 
menced the  charge,  but  the  firing  of  the  gun  and  the  noise 
of  our  rush  through  the  crackling  timber  alarmed  the  Indi- 
ans, who  at  once  sprang  to  their  horses  and  were  away  from 
us  before  we  reached  their  late  camp.  Captain  Graham 
called  out  "  Follow  me  boys !  "  which  we  did  for  awhile,  but 
in  the  darkness  the  Indians  made  good  their  escape.  The 


160 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


bugle  then  gave  the  re-call,  but  some  of  the  darkies  did  not 
get  back  until  morning,  having,  in  their  fright,  allowed 
their  horses  to  run  away  with  them  withersoever  it  suited 
the  animal's  pleasure  to  go. 

We  followed  the  trail  the  next  day  for  awhile,  but  as  it 
become  evident  that  it  wTonld  be  a  long  chase  to  overtake  the 
enemy,  and  as  we  had  rations  only  for  the  day,  we  com- 
menced the  return.  Captain  Graham  was  bitterly  disap- 
pointed in  not  being  able  to  get  the  fight  when  it  seemed  so 
near  at  one  time.  He  roundly  cursed  the  "  nigger."  who 
fired  the  gun,  and  as  a  punishment  for  his  carelessness,  he 
was  compelled  to  walk  all  the  way  back  to  Fort  Hays. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

EARNING   A    TITLE. 

JT  was  about  this  time  that  the  end  of  the  Kansas  Pacific 
track  was  in  the  heart  of  the  buffalo  country,  and  the 
company  was  employing  about  twelve  hundred  men  in  the 
construction  of  the  road.  As  the  Indians  were  very  trouble- 
some, it  was  difficult  to  obtain  fresh  meat  for  the  workmen, 
and  the  company  therefore  concluded  to  engage  the  services 
of  hunters  to  kill  buffaloes. 

Having  heard  of  my  experience  and  success  as  a  buffalo 
hunter,  Messrs.  Goddard  Brothers,  who  had  the  contract  for 
boarding  the  employees  of  the  road,  met  me  in  Hays  City 
one  day  and  made  me  a  good  offer  to  become  their  hunter, 
and  I  at  onqe  entered  into  a  contract  with  them.  They  said 
that  they  would  require  about  twelve  buffaloes  per  day ;  that 
would  be  twenty-four  hams,  as  we  took  only  the  hind-quar- 
ters and  hump  of  each  buffalo.  As  this  was  to  be  dangerous 
work,  on  account  of  the  Indians,  who  were  riding  all  over 
that  section  of  the  country,  and  as  I  would  be  obliged  to  go 
from  five  to  ten  miles  from  the  road  each  day  to  hunt  the 
buffaloes,  accompanied  by  only  one  man  with  a  light  wagon 
for  the  transportation  of  the  meat,  I  of  course  demanded  a 
large  salary.  They  could  afford  to  remunerate  me  well, 
because  the  meat  would  not  cost  them  anything.  They 
agreed  to  give  me  five  hundred  dollars  per  month,  provided 
I  furnished  them  all  the  fresh  meat  required. 

161 


162  •      LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

Leaving  my  partner,  Rose,  to  complete  our  grading  con- 
tract, I  immediately  began  my  career  as  a  buffalo  hunter  for 
the  Kansas  Pacific  Railroad,  and  it  was  not  long  before  I 
.acquired  considerable  notoriety.  It  was  at  this  time  that  the 
very  appropriate  name  of  "  Buffalo  Bill,"  was  conferred  upon 
me  by  the  road-hands.  It  has  stuck  to  me  ever  since,  and  I 
have  never  been  ashamed  of  it. 

During  my  engagement  as  hunter  for  the  company — a 
period  of  less  than  eighteen  months — I  killed  4,280  buffa- 
loes ;  and  I  had  many  exciting  adventures  with  the  Indians, 
as  well  as  hair-breadth  escapes,  some  of  which  are  well  worth 
relating. 

One  day  in  the  spring  of  1868,1  mounted  Brigham  and 
started  for  Smoky  Hill  River.  After  galloping  about  twenty 
miles  I  reached  the  top  of  a  small  hill  overlooking  the  valley 
of  that  beautiful  stream. 

As  I  was  gazing  on  the  landscape,  I  suddenly  saw  a  band 
of  about  thirty  Indians  nearly  half  a  mile  distant ;  I  knew 
by  the  way  they  jumped  on  their  horses  that  they  had  seen 
me  as  soon  as  I  came  into  sight. 

The  only  chance  I  had  for  my  life  was  to  make  a  run  for 
it,  and  I  immediately  wheeled  and  started  back  towards  the 
railroad.  Brigham  seemed  to  understand  what  was  up,  and 
he  struck  out  as  if  he  comprehended  that  it  was  to  be  a  run 
for  life.  He  crossed  a  ravine  in  a  few  jumps,  and  on  reach- 
ing a  ridge  beyond,  I  drew  rein,  looked  back  and  saw  the 
Indians  coming  for  rne  at  full  speed  and  evidently  well- 
mounted.  I  would  have  had  little  or  no  fear  of  being  over- 
taken if  Brigham  had  been  fresh;  but  as  he  was  not, I  felt 
uncertain  as  to  how  he  would  stand  a  long  chase. 

My  pursuers  seemed  to  be  gaining  on  me  a  little,  and  I 
let  Brigham  shoot  ahead  again  ;  when  we  had  run  about  three 
miles  farther,  some  eight  or  nine  of  the  Indians  we're  not  over 
two  hundred  yards  behind,  and  five  or  six  of  these  seemed 
to  be  shortening  the  gap  at  every  jump.  Brigham  now  ex- 
erted himself  more  than  ever,  and  for  the  next  three  or  four 


A  RACE  FOR  LIFE. 


105 


miles  he  got  "  right  down  to  business,"  and  did  some  of  the 
prettiest  running  I  ever  saw.  But  the  Indians  were  about 
as  well-mounted  as  I  was,  and  one  of  their  horses  in  j  ar- 
ticular— a  spotted  animal — was  gaining  on  me  all  the  time. 
Nearly  all  the  other  horses  were  strung  out  behind  for  a 
distance  of  two  miles,  but  still  chasing  after  me. 

The  Indian  who  was  riding  the  spotted  horse  was  armed 
with  a  rifle,  and  would  occasionally  send  a  bullet  whistling 


DOWN   WENT   HIS   HORSE. 


along,  sometimes  striking*  the  ground  ahead  of  me.  I  saw 
that  this  fellow  must  be  checked,  or  a  stray  bullet  from 
his  gun  might  hit  me  or  iny  horse;  so,  suddenly  stopping 
Brigham,  and  quickly  wheeling  him  around,  I  raised  old 
"Lucretia"  to  my  shoulder,  took  deliberate  aim  at  the 
Indian  and  his  horse,  hoping  to  hit  one  or  the  other,  and 
fired.  He  was  not  over  eighty  yards  from  me  at  this  time, 
and  at  the  crack  of  my  rifle  down  went  his  horse.  JSrot 
waiting  to  see  if  he  recovered,  I  turned  Brigham,  and  in  a 
10 


166  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

moment  we  were  again  fairly  flying  towards  our  destina- 
tion ;  we  bad  urgent  business  about  tbat  time,  and  were  in  a 
hurry  to  get  tbere. 

Tbe  otber  Indians  had  gained  on  us  while  I  was  engaged 
in  shooting  at  their  leader,  and  tbey  sent  several  shots  whiz- 
zing past  me,  but  fortunately  none  of  them  hit  the  intended 
mark.  To  return  their  compliment  I  occasionally  wheeled 
myself  in  the  saddle  and  fired  back  at  them,  and  one  of  my 
shots  broke  the  leg  of  one  of  their  horses,  which  left  its 
rider  hors  (e)  dc  combat,  as  the  French  would  say. 

Only  seven  or  eight  Indians  now  remained  in  dangerous 
proximity  to  me,  and  as  their  horses  were  beginning  to  lag 
somewhat,  I  checked  my  faithful  old  steed  a  little,  to  allow 
him  an  opportunity  to  draw  an  extra  breath  or  two.  I  had 
determined,  if  it  should  come  to  the  worst,  to  drop  into  a 
buffalo  wallow,  where  I  could  stand  the  Indians  off  for  a 
while;  but  I  was  nut  compelled  to  do  this,  as  Brigham  car- 
ried me  through  most  nobly. 

The  chase  was  kept  up  until  we  came  within  three  miles 
of  the  end  of  the  railroad  track,  where  two  companies  of 
soldiers  were  stationed  for  the  purpose  of  protecting  the 
workmen  from  the  Indians.  One  of  the  outposts  saw  the 
Indians  chasing  me  across  the  prairie,  and  gave  the  alarm. 
In  a  few  minutes  I  saw,  greatly  to  my  delight,  men  coming 
on  foot,  and  cavalrymen,  too,  came  galloping  to  our  rescue 
as  soon  as  they  could  mount  their  horses.  When  the  Indians 
observed  this,  they  turned  and  ran  in  the  direction  from 
which  they  had  come.  In  a  very  few  minutes  I  was  met  by 
some  of  the  infantrymen  and  trackmen,  and  jumping  to  the 
ground  and  pulling  the  blanket  and  saddle  off  of  Brigham, 
I  told  them  what  he  had  done  for  me ;  they  at  once  took 
him  in  charge,  led  him  around,  and  rubbed  him  down  so 
vigorously  that  I  thought  they  would  rub  him  to  death. 

Captain  Nolan,  of  the  Tenth  Cavalry,  now  came  up  with 
forty  of  his  men,  and  upon  learning  what  had  happened  he 
determined  to  pursue  the  Indians.  He  kindly  offered  me 


PAYING  THEM  IN  THEIR  OWN  COIN.  167 

one  of  the  cavalry  horses,  and  after  putting  my  own  saddle 
and  bridle  on  the  animal,  we  started  out  after  the  flying 
Indians,  who  only  a  few  minutes  before  had  been  making 
it  so  uncomfortably  lively  for  me.  Our  horses  were  all 
fresh  and  of  excellent  stock,  and  we  soon  began  shortening 
the  distance  between  ourselves  and  the  redskins.  Before 
they  had  gone  five  miles  we  overtook  and  killed  eight  of 
their  number.  The  others  succeeded  in  making  their  escape. 
On  coming  up  to  the  place  where  I  had  killed  the  first  horse 
— the  spotted  one — on  my  "home  run,"  I  found  that  my 
bullet  had  struck  him  in  the  forehead  and  killed  him  instant- 
ly. He  was  a  noble  animal,  and  ought  to  have  been  engaged 
in  better  business. 

When  we  got  back  to  camp  I  found  old  Brigham  grazing 
quietly  and  contentedly  on  the  grass.  He  looked  up  at  me 
as  if  to  ask  if  we  had  got  away  with  any  of  those  fellows 
who  had  chased  us.  I  believe  he  read  the  answer  in  my  eyes. 

Another  very  exciting  hunting  adventure  of  mine  which 
deserves  a  place  in  these  reminiscences  occurred  near  Saline 
river.  My  companion  at  the  time  was  a  man  called  Scotty, 
a  butcher,  who  generally  accompanied  me  on  these  hunting 
expeditions  to  cut  up  the  buffaloes  and  load  the  meat  into  a 
light  wagon  which  he  brought  to  carry  it  in.  He  was  a 
brave  little  fellow  and  a  most  excellent  shot.  I  had  killed 
some  fifteen  buffaloes,  and  we  had  started  for  home  with  a 
wagon-load  of  meat.  When  within  about  eight  miles  of  our 
destination,  we  suddenly  ran  on  to  a  party  of  at  least  thirty 
Indians  who  came  riding  out  of  the  head  of  a  ravine. 

On  this  occasion  I  was  mounted  on  a  most  excellent  horse 
belonging  to  the  railroad  company,  and  could  easily  have 
made  my  escape  ;  but  of  course  I  could  not  leave  Scotty 
who  was  driving  a  pair  of  mules  hitched  to  the  wagon.  To 
think  was  to  act,  in  those  days ;  and  as  Scotty  and  I  had 
often  talked  over  a  plan  of  defense  in  case  we  were  ever 
surprised  by  Indians,  we  instantly  proceeded  to  carry  it  out. 
We  jumped  to  the  ground,  unhitched  the  mules  quicker  than 


168  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

it  had  ever  been  done  before,  and  tied  them  and  my  horse  to 
the  wagon.  We  threw  the  buffalo  hams  upon  the  ground, 
and  piled  them  around  the  wheels  in  such  a  shape  as  to  form 
a  breastwork.  All  this  was  done  in  a  shorter  time  than  it 
takes  to  tell  it;  and  then,  with  our  extra  box  of  ammunition 
and  three  or  four  extra  revolvers,  which  we  always  carried 
along  with  us,  we  crept  under  the  wagon  and  were  fully 
prepared  to  give  our  visitors  the  warmest  kind  of  a  recep- 
tion. 

The  Indians  came  on  pell-mell,  but  when  they  were  with- 
in one  hundred  yards  of  us  we  opened  such  a  sudden  and 
galling  fire  upon  them,  that  they  held  up  and  began  to  cir- 
cle around  the  wagon  instead  of  riding  up  to  take  tea  with 
us.  They  however  charged  back  and  forth  upon  us  several 
times,  and  their  shots  killed  the  two  mules  and  my  horse; 
but  we  gave  it  to  them  right  and  left,  and  had  the  satisfac- 
tion of  seeing  three  of  them  fall  to  the  ground  not  more 
than  fifty  yards  away.  On  seeing  how  well  we  were  forti- 
fied and  protected  by  our  breastwork  of  hams,  they  proba- 
bly came  to  the  conclusion  that  it  would  be  a  difficult  under- 
taking to  dislodge  us,  for  they  drew  off  and  gave  us  a  rest, 
but  only  a  short  one. 

This  was  the  kind  of  fighting  we  had  been  expecting  for 
a  long  time,  as  we  knew  that  sooner  or  later  we  would  be 
" jumped "  by  Indians  while  we  were  out  buffalo  hunting. 
1  had  an  understanding  with  the  officers  who  commanded 
the  troops  at  the  end  of  the  track,  that  in  case  their  pickets 
should  at  any  time  notice  a  smoke  in  the  direction  of  our 
hunting  ground,  they  were  to  give  the  alarm,  so  that  assist- 
ance might  be  sent  to  us  for  the  smoke  was  to  indicate  that 
we  were  in  danger. 

I  now  resolved  to  signal  to  the  troops  in  the  manner 
agreed  on,  and  at  the  first  opportunity  set  fire  to  the  grass. 
on  the  windward  side  of  the  wagon.  The  fire  spread  over 
the  prairie  at  a  rapid  rate,  causing  a  dense  smoke  which  I 
knew  would  be  seen  at  the  camp.  The  Indians  did  not 


CORKALED  BY  INDIANS. 


1G9 


seem  to  understand  this  strategic  movement.  They  got  off 
from  their  horses,  and  from  behind  a  bank  or  knoll,  again 
peppered  away  at  us;  but  we  were  well  fortified,  and  when- 
ever they  showed  their  heads  we  let  them  know  that  we 
could  shoot  as  well  as  they. 

After  we  had  been  cooped  up  in  onr  little  fort,  for  about 
an  hour,  we  discovered  cavalry  coming  toward  us  at  full 
gallop  over  the  prairie.  Our  signal  of  distress  had  proved 


THE    FIRE    SIGNAL. 


a  success.  The  Indians  saw  the  soldiers  at  about  the  same 
time  that  we  did,  and  thinking  that  it  would  not  be  healthy 
for  them  to  remain  much  longer  in  that  vicinity,  they 
mounted  their  horses  and  disappeared  down  the  canons  of 
the  creek.  When  the  soldiers  came  up  we  had  the  satisfac- 
tion of  showing  them  five  "  good  "  Indians,  that  is  dead  ones. 
Two  hours  later  we  pulled  into  camp  with  our  load  of 
meat,  which  was  found  to  be  all  right,  except  that  it  had  a 
few  bullets  and  arrows  sticking  in  it. 


170 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


"While  I  was  hunting  for  the  Kansas  Pacific  railway,  1  had 
the  pleasure,  in  the  fall  of  1867,  of  meeting  the  celebrated 
Kit  Carson,  one  of,  if  not  the  oldest  and  most  noted  scout, 
guide,  and  hunter  that  our  western  country  has  ever  produced. 
He  was  on  his  way  to  Washington.  I  also  met  him  on  his 
return  from  the  East,  and  invited  him  to  be  my  guest  for  a 
few  days  at  Hays  City,  which  invitation  he  accepted.  He 
then  proceeded  to  Fort  Lyon,  Colorado,  near  which  place 
his  son-in-law,  Mr.  Boggs,  and  family,  resided.  At  this  time 
his  health  was  failing,  and  shortly  afterwards  he  died  at  Mr. 
Boggs'  residence  on  the  Picket  Wire  Creek. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

CHAMPION    BUFFALO    KILLER. 

SHORTLY  after  the  adventures  mentioned  in  the  pre- 
ceding chapter,  I  had  iny  celebrated  buffalo  hunt  with 
Billy  Comstock,  a  noted  scout,  guide  and  interpreter,  who 
was  then  chief  of  scouts  at  Fort  Wallace,  Kansas.  Com- 
stock had  the  reputation,  for  a  long  time,  of  being  a  most 
successful  buffalo  hunter,  and  the  officers  in  particular,  who 
had  seen  him  kill  buffaloes,  were  very  desirous  of  backing 
him  in  a  match  against  me.  It  was  accordingly  arranged 
that  I  should  shoot  him  a  buffalo-killing  match,  and  the  pre- 
liminaries were  easily  and  satisfactorily  agreed  upon.  We 
were  to  hunt  one  day  of  eight  hours,  beginning  at  eight 
o'clock  in  the  morning,  and  closing  at  four  o'clock  in  the 
afternoon.  The  wager  was  five  hundred  dollars  a  side,  and 
the  man  who  should  kill  the  greater  number  of  buffaloes 
from  on  horseback  was  to  be  declared  the  winner. 

The  hunt  took  place  about  twenty  miles  east  of  Sheridan, 
and  as  it  had  been  pretty  well  advertised  and  noised  abroad, 
a  large  crowd  witnessed  the  interesting  and  exciting  scene. 
An  excursion  party,  mostly  from  St.  Louis,  consisting  of 
about  a  hundred  gentlemen  and  ladies,  came  out  on  a  special 
train  to  view  the  sport,  and  among  the  number  was  my 
wife,  with  little  baby  Arta,  who  had  come  to  remain  with 
me  for  a  while. 

171 


OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

The  buffaloes  were  quite  plenty,  and  it  was  agreed  that 
we  should  go  into  the  same  herd  at  the  same  tune  and 
"make  a  run,"  as  we  called  it,  each  one  killing  as  many  as 
possible.  A  referee  was  to  follow  each  of  us  on  horseback 
when  we  entered  the  herd,  and  count  the  buffaloes  killed  by 
each  man.  The  St.  Louis  excursionists,  as  well  as  the  other 
spectators,  rode  out  to  the  vicinity  of  the  hunting  grounds  in 
wragons  and  on  horseback,  keeping  well  out  of  sight  of  the 
buffaloes,  so  as  not  to  frighten  them,  until  the  time  came 
for  us  to  dash  into  the  herd;  when  they  were  to  come  up  as 
near  as  they  pleased  and  witness  the  chase. 

We  were  fortunate  in  the  first  run  in  getting  good  ground. 
Comstock  was  mounted  on  one  of  his  favorite  horses,  while 
I  rode  old  Brighain.  I  felt  confident  that  1  had  the  advan- 
tage of  Comstock  in  two  things — first,  I  had  the  best  buf- 
falo horse  that  ever  made  a  -track  ;  and  second,  1  was  using 
what  was  known  at  that  time  as  the  needle-gun,  a  breech- 
loading  Springfield  rifle — calibre  50, — it  was  my  favorite  old 
"  Lucretia,"  which  has  already  been  introduced  to  the  notice 
of  the  reader;  while  Comstock  was  armed  with  a  Henry 
rifle,  and  although  he  could  fire  a  few  shots  quicker  than  I 
could,  yet  I  was  pretty  certain  that  it  did  not  carry  powder 
and  lead  enough  to  do  execution  equal  to  my  calibre  50. 

At  last  the  time  came  to  begin  the  match.  Comstock  and 
I  dashed  into  a  herd,  followed  by  the  referees.  The  buf- 
faloes separated  ;  Comstock  -took  the  left  bunch  and  J  the 
right.  My  great  forte  in  killing  buffaloes  from  horseback 
was  to  get  them  circling  by  riding  my  horse  at  the  head  of 
the  herd,  shooting  the  leaders,  thus  crowding  their  followers 
to  the  left,  till  they  would  finally  circle  round  and  round. 

On  this  morning  the  buffaloes  were  very  accommodating, 
and  I  soon  had  them  running  in  a  beautiful  circle,  when  I 
dropped  them  thick  and  fast,  until  I  had  killed  thirty.-eight; 
which  finished  my  run. 

Comstock  began  shooting  at  the  rear  of  the  herd,  which 
he  was  chasing,  and'  they  kept  straight  on.  He  succeeded^ 


A  GREAT  BUFFALO  KILLING  MATCH.  173 

however,  in  killing  twenty-three,  but  they  were  scattered 
over  a  distance  of  three  miles,  while  mine  lay  close  together. 
I  had  "  nursed  "  my  buffaloes,  as  a  billiard-player  does  the 
balls  when  he  makes  a  big  run. 

After  the  result  of  the  first  run  had  been  duly  announced, 
our  St.  Louis  excursion  friends — who  had  approached  to  the 
place  where  we  had  stopped — set  out  a  lot  of  champagne, 
which  they  had  brought  with  them,  and  which  proved  a 
good  drink  on  a  Kansas  prairie,  and  a  buffalo  hunter  was  a 
good  man  to  get  away  with  it. 

While  taking  a  short  rest,  we  suddenly  spied  another  herd 
of  buffaloes  coming  toward  us.  It  was  only  a  small  drove-., 
and  we  at  once  prepared  to  give  the  animals  a  lively  recep- 
tion. They  proved  to  be  a  herd  of  cows  and  calves — which,, 
by  the  way,  are  quicker  in  their  movements  than  the  bulls. 
We  charged  in  among  them,  and  I  concluded  my  run  with  a 
score  of  eighteen,  while  Comstock  killed  fourteen.  The 
score  now  stood  fifty-six  to  thirty-seven,  in  my  favor. 

Again  the  excursion  party  approached,  and  once  more  the 
champagne  was  tapped.  After  we  had  eaten  a  lunch  which 
was  spread  for  us,  we  resumed  the  hunt.  Striking  out  for 
a  distance  of  three  miles,  we  came  up  close  to  another  herd. 
As  I  was  so  far  ahead  of  my  competitor  in  the  number 
killed,  I  thought  I  could  afford  to  give  an  extra  exhibition 
of  my  skill.  I  had  told  the  ladies  that  I  would,  on  the  next 
run,  ride  my  horse  without  saddle  or  bridle.  This  had  raised 
the  excitement  to  fever  heat  among  the  excursionists,  and  I 
remember  one  fair  lady  who  endeavored  to  prevail  upon  me 
not  to  attempt  it. 

"  That's  nothing  at  all,"  said  I;  "I  have  done  it  many  a 
time,  and  old  Brigham  knows  as  well  as  I  what  I  am  doing, 
and  sometimes  a  great  deal  better." 

So,  leaving  my  saddle  and  bridle  with  the  wagons,  we  rode 
to  the  windward  of  the  buffaloes,  as  usual,  and  when  within 
a  few  hundred  yards  of  them  we  dashed  into  the  herd.  I 
soon  had  thirteen  laid  out  on  the  ground,  the  last  one  of 


174  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

which  I  had  driven  down  close  to  the  wagons,  where  the 
ladies  were.  It  frightened  some  of  the  tender  creatures  to 
see  the  buffalo  coming  at  full  speed  directly  toward  them ; 
but  when  he  had  got  within  fifty  yards  of  one  of  the  wagons, 
I  shot  him  dead  in  his  tracks.  This  made  my  sixty-ninth 
buffalo,  and  finished  my  third  and  last  run,  Comstock  hav- 
ing killed  forty-six. 

As  it  was  now  late  in  the  afternoon,  Comstock  and  his 
backers  gave  up  the  idea  that  he  could  beat  me,  and  there- 
upon the  referees  declared  me  the  winner  of  the  match,  as 
\vell  as  the  champion  buffalo-hunter  of  the  plains.* 

On  our  way  back  to  carnp,  we  took  with  us  some  of  the 
choice  meat  and  finest  heads.  In  this  connection  it  will  not 
be  out  of  place  to  state  that  during  the  time  I  wns  hunting 
for  the  Kansas  Pacific,  I  always  brought  into  camp  the 
best  buffalo  heads,  and  turned  them  over  to  the  company, 
who  found  a  very  good  use  for  them.  They  had  them 
mounted  in  the  best  possible  manner,  and  sent  them  to  all 
the  principal  cities  and  railroad  centers  in  the  country,  hav- 
ing them  placed  in  prominent  positions  at  the  leading  hotels, 
depots,  and  other  public  buildings,  as  a  sort  of  trade-mark, 
or  advertisement,  of  the  Kansas  Pacific  Eailroad  ;  and  to-day 
they  attract  the  attention  of  the  traveler  almost  everywhere. 
'Whenever  I  am  traveling  over  the  country  and  see  one  of 
these  trade-marks,  I  feel  pretty  certain  that  I  was  the  cause 


*  Poor  Billy  Oomstock  was  afterwards  treacherously  murdered  by  the 
Indians.  He  and  Sharpe  Grover  visited  a  village  of  Indians,  supposed  to 
be  peaceably  inclined,  near  Big  Spring  Station,  in  Western  Kansas;  and 
after  spending  several  hours  with  the  redskins  in  friendly  conversation, 
they  prepared  to  depart,  having  declined  an  invitation  to  pass  the  night 
there.  It  appears  that  Comstock's  beautiful  white-handled  revolver  had 
attracted  the  attention  of  the  Indians,  who  overtook  him  and  his  companion 
when  they  had  gone  about  half  a  mile.  After  surrounding  the  two  men 
they  suddenly  attacked  them.  They  killed,  scalped  and  robbed  Comstock; 
but  Grover,  although  severely  wounded,  made  his  escape,  owing  to  the 
fleetness  of  the  excellent  horse  which  he  was  riding.  This  sad  event 
occurred  August  27,  1868. 


NEW  LAURELS  FOR  BRIGHAM.  175 

of  the  death  of  the  old  fellow  whose  body  it  once  orna- 
mented, and  many  a  wild  and  exciting  hunt  is  thus  called  to 
mind. 

The  end  of  the  track  finally  reached  Sheridan,  in  the 
month  of  May,  1868,  and  as  the  road  was  not  to  be  built 
any  farther  just  then,  my  services  as  a  hunter  were  not  any 
longer  required.  At  this  time  there  was  a  general  Indian 
war  raging  all  along  the  western  borders.  General  Sheridan 
had  taken  up  his  headquarters  at  Fort  Hayes,  in  order  to  be 
iu  the  field  to  superintend  the  campaign  in  person.  As 
scouts  and  guides  were  in  great  demand,  I  concluded  once 
more  to  take  up  my  old  avocation  of  scouting  and  guiding 
for  the  army. 

Having,no  suitable  place  in  which  to  leave  my  old  and 
faithful  buffalo-hunter  Brigham,  and  not  wishing  to  kill  him 
by  scouting,  I  determined  to  dispose  of  him.  I  was  very 
reluctant  to  part  with  him,  but  I  consoled  myself  with  the 
thought  that  he  would  riot  be  likely  to  receive  harder  usage 
in  other  hands  than  he  had  in  mine.  I  had  several  good 
offers  to  sell  him  ;  but  at  the  suggestion  of  some  gentlemen 
in  Sheridan,  all  of  whom  were  anxious  to  obtain  possession 
of  the  horse,  I  put  him  up  at  a  rafiie,  in  order  to  give  them 
all  an  equal  chance  of  becoming  the  owner  of  the  famous 
steed.  There  were  ten  chances  at  thirty  dollars  each,  and 
they  were  all  quickly  taken. 

Old  Brigham  was  won  by  a  gentleman — Mr.  Ike  Bonham, 
— who  took  him  to  "Wyandotte,  Kansas,  where  he  soon 
added  new  laurels  to  his  already  brilliant  record.  Although 
I  am  getting  ahead  of  my  story,  I  must  now  follow  Brigham 
for  a  while.  A  grand  tournament  came  off  four  miles  from 
Wyandotte,  and  Brigham  took  part  in  it.  As  has  already 
been  stated,  his  appearance  was  not  very  prepossessing,  and 
nobody  suspected  him  of  being  anything  but  the  most  ordi- 
nary kind  of  a  plug.  The  friends  of  the  rider  laughed  at 
him  for  being  mounted  on  such  a  dizzy-looking  steed. 
When  the  exercises — which  were  of  a  very  tame  character, 


176  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

being  more  for  style  than  speed— were  over,  and  just  as 
the  crowd  were  about  to  return  to  the  city,  a  purse  of  '$250 
was  made  up,  to  be  given  to  the  h-orse  that  could  first  reach 
Wyandotte,  four  miles  distant.  The  arrangement  was  car- 
ried out,  and  Brigham  was  entered  as  one  of  the  contestants 
for  the  purse.  Everybody  laughed  at  Mr.  Bonham  when  it 
became  known  that  he  was  to  ride  that  poky-looking  plug 
against  the  five  thoroughbreds  which  were  to  take  part  in 
the  race. 

When  all  the  preliminaries  had  been  arranged,  the  signal 
was  given,  and  off  went  the  horses  for  Wyandotte.  For  the 
first  half-mile  several  of  the  horses  led  Brigham,  but  on  the 
second  mile  he  began  passing  them  one  after  the  other,  and 
on  the  third  mile  he  was  in  advance  of  them  all,  and  was 
showing  them  all  the  road  at  a  lively  rate.  On  the  fourth 
mile  his  rider  let  him  out,  and  arrived  at  the  hotel — the 
home-station — in  Wyandotte  a  long  way  ahead  of  his  fastest 
competitor. 

Everybody  was  surprised,  as  well  as  disgusted,  that  such  a 
homely  "critter"  should  be  the  winner.  Brigham,  of 
course,  had  already  acquired  a  wide  reputation,  and  his 
name  and  exploits  had  often  appeared  in  the  newspapers, 
and  when  it  was  learned  that  this  "  critter"  was  none  other 
than  the  identical  buffalo -hunting  Brigham,  nearly  the 
whole  crowd  admitted  that  they  had  heard  of  him  before, 
and  had  they  known  him  in  the  first  place  they  certainly 
would  have  ruled  him  out. 

I  finally  lost  track  of  Brigham,  and  for  several  years  I  did 
not  know  what  had  become  of  him.  Three  years  ago,  while 
I  was  at  Memphis,  Tennessee,  I  met  a  Mr.  Wilcox,  who  had 
been  one  of  the  superintendents  of  construction  of  the  Kan- 
sas Pacific  Railroad,  and  he  informed  me  that  he  owned 
Brigham,  and  that  he  was  at  that  time  on  his  farm,  only  a 
few  miles  out  of  town.  The  next  day  I  rode  out  with  Mr. 
Wilcox  and  took  a  look  at  the  erallant  old  horse.  He  tfas 
comfortably  cared  for  in  Mr.  Wilcox's  stable,  and  looked  the 


BRIGHAM'S  PRESENT  HOME. 


177 


same  clever  pony  that  he  always  was.  It  seemed  as  if  he 
almost  remembered  me,  and  I  put  my  arms  around  his  neck, 
as  though  he  had  been  a  long-lost  child.  Mr.  Wilcox  bought 
the  horse  at  Wyandotte,  from  the  gentleman  who  had  won 
him  at  the  raffle,  and  he  intends  to  keep  him  as  long  as  he 
lives.  I  am  grateful  that  he  is  in  such  good  hands,  and 
whenever  I  again  visit  Memphis  I  shall  surely  go  and  see 
Brigham  if  he  is  still  alive. 

But  to  return  to  the  thread  of  my  narrative,  from  which  I 
have  wandered.  Having  received  the  appointment  of  guide 
and  scout,  and  having  been  ordered  to  report  at  Fort  Larned, 
then  commanded  by  Captain  Dangerfield  Parker,  I  saw  it 
was  necessary  to  take  my  family — who  had  remained  with 
me  at  Sheridan,  after  the  buffalo-hunting  match — to  Leaven- 
worth,  and  there  leave  them.  This  I  did  at  once,  and  after 
providing  them  with  a  comfortable  little  home,  I  returned 
and  reported  for  duty  at  Fort  Larned. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

A    COURIER. 

THE  scouts  at  Fort  Larned,  when  I  arrived  there,  were 
commanded  by  Dick  Curtis — an  old  guide,  frontiersman 
and  Indian  interpreter.  There  were  some  three  hundred 
lodges  of  Kiowa  and  Comanche  Indians  camped  near  the 
fort.  These  Indians  had  not  as  yet  gone  upon  the  war- 
path, but  were  restless  and  discontented,  and  their  leading 
chiefs,  Satanta,  Lone  Wolf,  Kicking  Bird,  Satank,  Sittamore, 
and  other  noted  warriors,  were  rather  saucy.  The  post  at 
the  time  was  garrisoned  by  only  two  companies  of  infantry 
and  one  of  cavalry. 

General  Hazen,  who  was  at  the  post,  was  endeavoring  to 
pacify  the  Indians  and  keep  them  from  going  on  the  war- 
path. I  was  appointed  as  his  special  scout,  and  one  morning 
he  notified  me  that  he  was  going  to  Fort  Harker,  and  wished 
me  to  accompany  him  as  far  as  Fort  Zarah,  thirty  miles  dis- 
tant. The  General  usually  traveled  in  an  ambulance,  but 
this  trip  he  was  to  make  in  a  six-mule  wagon,  under  the 
escort  of  a  squad  of  twenty  infantrymen.  So,  early  one 
morning  in  August,  we  started  ;  arriving  safely  at  Fort 
Zarah  at  twelve  o'clock.  General  Hazen  thought  it  unneces- 
sary that  we  should  go  farther,  and  he  proceeded  on  his  way 
to  Fort  Harker  without  an  escort,  leaving  instructions  that 
we  should  return  to  Fort  Larned  the  next  day. 

178 


SURPRISED  BY  INDIANS. 


1Y9 


After  the  General  had  gone  I  went  to  the  sergeant  in 
command  of  the  squad,  and  told  him  that  I  was  going  back 
that  very  afternoon,  instead  of  waiting  till  the  next  morn- 
ing; and  I  accordingly  saddled  up  my  mule  and  set  out  for 
Fort  Lamed.  I  proceeded  uninterruptedly  until  I  got  about 
half-way  between  the  two  posts,  when  at  Pawnee  Rock  I 
was  suddenly  "jumped  "  by  about  forty  Indians,  who  came 
dashing  up  to  me,  extending  their  hands  and  saying,  "How! 


A    BIG    JOKE. 

How!3      They  were  some  of  the  same  Indians  who  had 
been  hanging  around  Fort  Earned  in  the  morning.     I  saw 
that  they  had  on  their  war-paint,  and  were  evidently  now 
.  out  on  the  war-path. 

My  first  impulse  was  to  shake  hands  with  them,  as  they 
seemed  so  desirous  of  it.  I  accordingly  reached  out  my 
hand  to  one  of  them,  who  grasped  it  with  a  tight  grip,  and 
jerked  me  violently  forward;  another  pulled  my  mule  by 
the  bridle,  and  in  a  moment  I  was  completely  surrounded. 


180  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

Before  I  could  do  anything  at  all,  they  had  seized  my 
revolvers  from  the  holsters,  and  I  received  a  blow  on  the 
head  from  a  tomahawk  which  nearly  rendered  me  senseless. 
My  gun,  which  was  lying  across  the  saddle,  was  snatched 
from  its  place,  and  finally  the  Indian,  who  had  hold  of  the 
bridle,  started  off  towards  the  Arkansas  River,  leading  the 
mule,  which  was  being  lashed  by  the  other  Indians  who 
were  following. 

The  savages  were  all  singing,  yelling  and  whooping,  as 
only  Indians  can  do,  when  they  are  having  their  little  game 
all  their  own  way.  While  looking  towards  the  river  I  saw, 
on  the  opposite  side,  an  immense  village  moving  down  along 
the  bank,  and  then  I  became  convinced  that  the  Indians  had 
left  the  post  and  were  now  starting  out  on  the  war-path. 
My  captors  crossed  the  stream  with  me,  and  as  we  waded 
through  the  shallow  water  they  continued  to  lash  the  mule 
and  myself.  Finally  they  brought  me  before  an  important 
looking  body  of  Indians,  who  proved  to  be  the  chiefs  and 
principal  warriors.  I  soon  recognized  old  Satan ta  among 
them,  as  well  as  others  whom  I  knew,  and  I  supposed  it  was 
all  over  with  me. 

The  Indians  were  jabbering  away  so  rapidly  among  them- 
selves that  I  could  not  understand  what  they  were  saying. 
Satan  ta  at  last  asked  me  where  I  had  been  ;  and,  as  good 
luck  would  have  it,  a  happy  thought  struck  me.  I  told  him 
I  had  been  after  a  herd  of  cattle-or  "  wlioa-haws,"  as  they 
called  them.  It  so  happened  that  the  Indians  had  been  out 
of  meat  for  several  weeks,  as  the  large  herd  of  cattle  which 
had  been  promised  them  had  not  yet  arrived,  although  ex- 
pected by  them. 

The  moment  that  I  mentioned  that  I  had  been  searching 
for  the  "  whoa-liaws,"  old  Satanta  began  questioning  me  in 
a  very  eager  manner.  He  asked  me  where  the  cattle  were, 
and  I  replied  that  they  were  back  only  a  few  miles,  and  that 
I  had  been  sent  by  General  Hazen  to  inform  him  that  the 
cattle  were  coming,  and  that  they  were  intended  for  his 


MY  ESCAPE  FROM  THE  KIOWAS.  181 

people.  This  seemed  to  please  the  old  rascal,  who  also 
wanted  to  know  if  there  were  any  soldiers  with  the  herd, 
and  my  reply  was  that  there  were.  Thereupon  the  chiefs 
held  a  consultation,  and  presently  Satanta  asked  me  if  Gen- 
eral Hazen  had  really  said  that  they  should  have  the  cattle. 
I  replied  in  the  affirmative,  and  added  that  I  had  been 
directed  to  bring  the  cattle  to  them.  I  followed  this  up 
with  a  very  dignified  inquiry,  asking  why  his  young  men 
had  treated  me  so.  The  old  wretch  intimated  that  it  was 
only  "  a  freak  of  the  boys "  ;  that  the  young  men  had 
wanted  to  see  if  I  was  brave ;  in  fact,  they  had  only  meant 
to  test  my  bravery,  and  that  the  whole  thing  was  a  joke. 

The  veteran  liar  was  now  beating  me  at  my  own  game  of 
lying ;  but  I  was  very  glad  of  it,  as  it  was  in  my  favor.  I 
did  not  let  him  suspect  that  I  doubted  his  veracity,  but  I 
remarked  that  it  was  a  rough  way  to  treat  friends.  He  im- 
mediately ordered  his  young  men  to  give  me  back  my  arms, 
and  scolded  them  for  what  they  had  done.  Of  course,  the 
sly  old  dog  was  now  playing  it  very  fine,  as  he  was  anxious 
to  get  possession  of  the  cattle,  with  which  he  believed 
"  there  was  a  heap  of  soldiers  coining."  He  had  concluded 
it  was  not  best  to  fight  the  soldiers  if  he  could  get  the  cattle 
peaceably. 

Another  council  was  held  by  the  chiefs,  and  in  a  few 
minutes  old  Satanta  came  and  asked  me  if  I  would  go  over 
and  bring  the  cattle  down  to  the  opposite  side  of  the  river, 
so  that  they  could  get  them.  I  replied,  "  Of  course  ;  that's 
my  instruction  from  General  Hazen." 

Satanta  said  I  must  not  feel  angry  at  his  young  men,  for 
they  had  only  been  acting  in  furi.  He  then  inquired  if  I 
wished  any  of  his  men  to  accompany  me  to  the  cattle  herd. 
I  replied  that  it  would  be  better  for  me  to  go  alone,  and 
and  then  the  soldiers  could  keep  right  on  to  Fort  Larned, 
while  I  could  drive  the  herd  down  on  the  bottom.  So, 
wheeling  my  mule  around,  I  was  soon  re-crossing  the  river, 
leaving  old  Satanta  in  the  firm  belief  that  I  had  told  him  a 


182  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

straight  story,  and  was  going  for  the  cattle,  which  only  ex- 
isted in  my  imagination. 

I  hardly  knew  what  to  do,  but  thought  that  if  I  could  get 
the  river  between  the  Indians  and  myself  I  would  have  a 
good  three-quarters  of  a  mile  the  start  of  them,  and  could 
then  make  a  run  for  Fort  Larned,  as  my  mule  was  a  good  one. 

Thus  far  my  cattle  story  had  panned  out  all  right ;  but 
just  as  I  reached  the  opposite  bank  of  the  river,  I  looked 
behind  and  saw  that  ten  or  fifteen  Indians  who  had  begun 
to  suspect  something  crooked,  were  following  me.  The 
moment  that  my  mule  secured  a  good  foothold  on  the  bank, 
I  urged  him  into  a  gentle  lope  towards  the  place  where, 
according  to  my  statement,  the  cattle  were  to  be  brought. 
Upon  reaching  a  little  ridge,  and  riding  down  the  other  side 
out  of  view,  1  turned  my  mule  and  headed  him  westward 
for  Fort  Larned.  I  let  him  out  for  all  that  he  was  .worth, 
and  when  I  came  out  on  a  little  rise  of  ground,  I  looked  back, 
and  saw  the  Indian  village  in  plain  sight.  My  pursuers 
were  now  on  the  ridge  which  I  had  passed  over,  and  were 
looking  for  me  in  every  direction. 

Presently  they  spied  me,  and  seeing  that  I  was  running 
away,  they  struck  out  in  swift  pursuit,  and  in  a  few  minutes 
it  became  painfully  evident  that  they  were  gaining  on  me. 
They  kept  up  the  chase  as  far  as  Ash  Creek,  six  miles  from 
Fort  Larned.  I  still  led  them  half  a  mile,  as  their  horse& 
had  not  gained  much  during  the  last  hnlf  of  the  race.  My 
mule  seemed  to  have  gotten  liis  second  wind,  and  as  I  was 
on  the  old  road  I  had  played  the  whip  and  spurs  on  him 
without  much  cessation.  The  Indians  likewise  had  urged 
their  steeds  to  the  utmost. 

Finally,  upon  reaching  the  dividing  ridge  between  Ash 
Creek  and  Pawnee  Fork,  I  saw  Fort  Lamed  only  four  miles 
away.  It  was  now  sundown,  and  I  heard  the  evening  gun 
at  the  fort.  The  troops  of  the  garrison  little  dreamed  that 
there  was  a  man  flying  for  his  life  from  the  Indians  and  try- 
ing to  reach  the  post.  The  Indians  were  once  more  gaining 


AMBUSHING  THE  INDIANS. 


AMBUSHING  THE  INDIANS.  185 

on  me,  and  when  I  crossed  the  Pawnee  Fork,  two  miles  from 
the  post,  two  or  three  of  them  were  only  a  quarter  of  a  mile 
behind  me.  Just  as  I  had  gained  the  opposite  bank  of  the 
stream  I  was  overjoyed  to  see  some  soldiers  in  a  government 
wagon,  only  a  short  distance  off.  I  yelled  at  the  top  of  my 
voice,  and  riding  up  to  them,  told  them  that  the  Indians 
were  after  me. 

Denver  Jim,  a  well-known  scout,  asked  how  many  there 
were,  and  upon  my  informing  him  that  there  were  about  a 
dozen,  he  said  :  u  Let's  drive  the  wagon  into  the  trees,  and 
we'll  lay  for  'em."  The  team  was  hurriedly  driven  in  among 
the  trees  and  low  box-elder  bushes,  and  there  secreted. 

We  did  not  have  to  wait  long  for  the  Indians,  who  came 
dashing  up,  lashing  their  horses,  which  were  panting  and 
blowing.  We  let  two  of  them  pass  by,  but  we  opened  a 
lively  fire  on  the  next  three  or  four,  killing  two  at  the  first 
crack.  The  others  following,  discovered  that  they  had  run 
into  an  ambush,  and  whirling  off  into  the  brush  they  turned 
and  ran  back  in  the  direction  whence  they  had  come.  The 
two  who  had  passed  heard  the  firing  and  made  their  escape. 
We  scalped  the  two  that  we  had  killed,  arid  appropriated 
their  arms  and  equipments  ;  and  then  catching  their  horses, 
we  made  our  way  into  the  post.  The  soldiers  had  heard  us 
firing,  and  as  we  were  approaching  the  fort  the  drums  were 
being  beaten,  and  the  buglers  were  sounding  the  call  to  fall 
in.  The  officers  had  thought  that  Satanta  and  his  Indians 
were  coming  in  to  capture  the  fort. 

It  seems  that  on  the  morning  of  that  day,  two  hours  after 
General  Hazen  had  taken  his  departure,  old  Satanta  drove 
into  the  post  in  an  ambulance,  which  he  had  received  some 
months  before  as  a  present  from  the  government.  He 
appeared  to  be  angry  and  bent  on  mischief.  In  an  interview 
with  Captain  Parker,  the  commanding  officer,  he  asked  why 
General  Hazen  had  left  the  post  without  supplying  the  beef 
cattle  which  had  been  promised  to  him.  The  Captain  told 
him  that  the  cattle  were  surely  on  the  road,  but  he  could  not 
explain  why  they  were  detained. 


186  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

The  interview  proved  to  be  a  stormy  one;  and  Satanta 
made  numerous  threats,  saying  that  if  he  wished,  he  could 
capture  the  whole  post  with  his  warriors.  Captain  Parker, 
who  was  a  brave  man,  gave  Satanta  to  understand  that  he 
was  reckoning  beyond  his  powers,  and  would  find  it  a  more 
difficult  undertaking  than  he  had  any  idea  of,  as  they  were 
prepared  for  him  at  any  moment.  The  interview  finally 
terminated,  and  Satanta  angrily  left  the  officers  presence. 
Going  over  to  the  sutler's  store  he  sold  his  ambulance  to  Mr. 
Tappan  the  past  trader,  and  with  a  portion  of  the  proceeds 
he  secretly  managed  to  secure  some  whisky  from  some  bad 
men  around  the  fort.  There  are  always  to  be  found  around 
every  frontier  post  some  men  who  will  sell  whitky  to  the 
Indians  at  any  time  and  under  any  circumstances,  notwith- 
standing it  is  a  flagrant  violation  of  both  civil  and  military 
regulations. 

Satanta  mounted  his  horse,  and  taking  the  whisky  with 
him,  he  rode  rapidly  away  and  proceeded  straight  to  his  vil- 
lage. He  had  not  been  gone  over  an  hour,  when  he  returned 
to  the  vicinity  of  the  post  accompanied  by  his  warriors  who 
came  in  from  every  direction,  to  the  number  of  seven  or 
eight  hundred.  It  was  evident  that  the  irate  old  rascal  was 
"on  his  ear,"  so  to  speak,  and  it  looked  as  if  he  intended  to 
carry  out  his  threat  of  capturing  the  fort.  The  garrison  at 
once  turned  out  and  prepared  to  receive  the  red-skins,  who, 
when  within  half  a  mile,  circled  around  the  fort  and  fired 
numerous  shots  into  it,  instead  of  trying  to  take  it  by 
assault. 

While  this  circular  movement  was  going  on,  it  was  ob- 
served that  the  Indian  village  in  the  distance  was  packing 
up,  preparatory  to  leaving,  and  it  was  soon  underway.  The 
mounted  warriors  remained  behind  some  little  time,  to  give 
their  families  an  opportunity  to  get  away,  as  they  feared 
that  the  troops  might  possibly  in  some  manner  intercept 
them.  Finally,  they  encircled  the  post  several  times,  fired 
some  farewell  rounds,  and  then  galloped  away  over  the 


GOING  ON  THE  WAR  PATH.  187 

prairie  to  overtake  their  fast  departing  village.  On  their  way 
thither,  they  surprised  and  killed  a  party  of  wood-choppers 
down  on  the  Pawnee  Fork,  as  well  as  some  herders  who  were 
guarding  beef  cattle  ;  some  seven  or  eight  men  in  all,  were 
killed,  and  it  was  evident  that  the  Indians  meant  business. 

The  soldiers  with  the  wagon-^-whoin  I  had  met  at  the 
crossing  of  the  Pawnee  Fork — had  been  out  for*  the  bodies 
of'  the  men.  Under  the  circumstances  it  was  no  wonder  that 
the  garrison,  upon  hearing  the  reports  of  our  guns  when  we 
fired  upon  the  party  whom  we  ambushed,  should  have 
thought  the  Indians  were  coming  back  to  give  them  another 
"  turn." 

We  found  that  all  was  excitement  at  the  post ;  double 
guards  had  been  put  on  duty,  and  Captain  Parker  had  all  the 
scouts  at  his  headquarters.  He  was  endeavoring  to  get  some 
one  to  take  some  important  dispatches  to  General  Sheridan 
at  Fort  Hays.  I  reported  to  him  at  once,  and  stated  where 
I  had  met  the  Indians  and  how  I  had  escaped  from  them. 

"  You  was  very  fortunate,  Cody,  in  thinking  of  that  cat- 
tle story ;  but  for  that  little  game  your  hair  would  now  be 
an  ornament  to  a  Kiowa's  lodge,"  said  he. 

Just  then  Dick  Curtis  spoke  up  and  said :  "  Cody,  the 
Captain  is  anxious  to  send  some  dispatches  to  General  Sheri- 
dan, at  Fort  Hays,  and  none  of  the  scouts  here  seem  to  be 
very  willing  to  undertake  the  trip.  They  say  they  are  not 
well  enough  acquainted  with  the  country  to  find  the  way  at 
night." 

As  a  storm  wras  coming  up  it  was  quite  dark,  and  the 
scouts  feared  that  they  would  lose  the  way  ;  besides  it  was  a 
dangerous  ride,  as  a  large  party  of  Indians  were  known  to 
be  camped  on  Walnut  Creek,  on  the  direct  road  to  Fort 
Hays.  It  was  evident  that  Curtis  wTas  trying  to  induce  me 
to  volunteer.  I  made  some  evasive  answer  to  Curtis,  for  I 
did  not  care  to  volunteer  after  my  long  day's  ride.  But 
Curtis  did  not  let  the  matter  drop.  Said  he : 

"  I  wish,  Bill,  that  you  were  not  so  tired  by  your  chase  of 


188  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

to-day,  for  you  know  the  country  better  than  the  rest  of  the 
boys,  and  I  am  certain  that  you  could  go  through." 

"  As  far  as  the  ride  to  Fort  Hays  is  concerned,  that  alone 
would  matter  but  little  to  me,"  I  said,  u  but  it  is  a  risky 
piece  of  work  just  now,  as  the  country  is  full  of  hostile 
Indians;  still  if  no  other  scout  is  willing  to  volunteer,  I 
will  chance  it.  I'll  go,  provided  I  am  furnished  with  a  good 
horse.  I  am  tired  of  being  chased  on  a  government  mule 
by  Indians."  At  this  Captain  Nolan,  who  had  been  listen- 
ing to  our  conversation,  said  : 

"  Bill,  you  may  have  the  best  horse  in  my  company. 
You  can  take  ^Tour  choice  if  you  will  carry  these  dispatches. 
Although  it  is  against  regulations  to  dismount  an  enlisted 
man,  I  have  no  hesitancy  in  such  a  case  of  urgent  necessity 
as  this  is,  in  telling  you  that  you  may  have  any  horse  you 
may  wish." 

k<  Captain,  your  first  sergeant  has  a  splendid  horse,  and 
that's  the  one  I  want.  If  he'll  let  me  ride  that  horse,  I'll  be 
ready  to  start  in  one  hour,  storm  or  no  storm,"  said  I. 

"  Good  enough,  Bill ;  you  shall  have  the  horse  ;  but  are 
you  sure  you  can  find  your  way  on  such  a  dark  night  as 
this?" 

"  I  have  hunted  on  nearly  every  acre  of  ground  between 
here  and  Fort  Hnys,  and  I  can  almost  keep  my  route  by 
the  bones  of  the  dead  buffaloes."  I  confidently  replied. 

"  Never  fear,  Captain,  about  Cody  not  finding  the  way  ;  he 
is  as  good  in  the  dark  as  he  is  in  the  daylight,"  said  Curtis. 

An  orderly  was  sent  for  the  horse,  and  the  animal  was 
soon  brought  up,  although  the  sergeant  "  kicked  "  a  little 
against  letting  him  go.  After  eating  a  lunch  and  filling  a 
canteen  with  brandy,  I  went  to  headquarters  and  put  my 
own  saddle  and  bridle  on  the  horse  I  was  to  ride.  I  then 
got  the  dispatches,  and  by  ten  o'clock  was  on  the  road  to 
Fort  Hays,  which  was  sixty-five  miles  distant  across  the 
country.  The  scouts  had  all  bidden  me  a  hearty  good-bye, 
and  wished  me  success,  not  knowing  when,  if  ever,  they 


A  WISE  PRECAUTION.  139 

would  again  gaze  upon   "  my   warlike  form,"  as  the  poet 
would  say. 

It  was  dark  as  pitch,  but  this  I  rather  liked,  as  there  was 
little   probability   of   anys 
of  t  h  e  red-skins  seeing  m< 
unless  I  stumbled  upon  then 
accidentally.      My    greatest! 
danger  was   that  my    horse! 
might  run  into    a  hole  and 
fall  down,  aiul  in   this  way 
get   away   from   m  e.     Tc 
avoid  any  such  accident, 
tied  one  end    of    my  raw- 
hide lariat  to  the  b  r  i  d  1 
and  the   other  end  to   my 
belt.     I  didn't  propose  to] 
be  left  on  foot,  alone  out] 
on  the  prairie. 

It  was,  indeed,  a  wise  pre- 
caution that  Iliad  taken,  for 
within  the  next  three  mi 
the  horse,  sure  enough,  step-( 
ped  into  a  prairie-dog's  hole, 
and  down  he  went,  throwing  me  clear  over  his  head.  Spring- 
ing to  his  feet,  before  I  could  catch  hold  of  the  bridle,  he 
galloped  away  into  the  darkness ;  but  when  lie  reached  the 
full  length  of  the  lariat,  he  found  that  he  was  picketed  to 
Bison  William.  I  brought  him  up  standing,  and  after  find- 
ing my  gun,  which  had  dropped  to  the  ground,  I  went  up 
to  him  and  in  a  moment  was  in  the  saddle  again,  and  went 
on  my  way  rejoicing  keeping  straight  on  my  course  until 
I  came  to  the  ravines  leading  into  Walnut  Creek,  twenty- 
five  miles  from  Fort  Lamed,  where  the  country  became 
.rougher,  requiring  me  to  travel  slower  and  more  carefully, 
as  I  feared  the  horse  might  fall  over  the  bank,  it  being 
difficult  to  see  anything  five  feet  ahead.  As  a  good  horse 


190  LJFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

is  not  very  apt  to  jump  over  a  bank,  if  left  to  guide  himself, 
I  Jet  mine  pick  his  own  way.  I  was  now  proceeding  as 
quietly  as  possible,  for  I  was  in  the  vicinity  of  a  band  of 
Indians  who  had  recently  camped  in  that  locality.  1  thought 
that  I  had  passed  somewhat  above  the  spot,  having  made  a 
little  circuit  to  the  west  with  that  intention  ;  but  as  bad  luck 
would  have  it  this  time,  when  I  came  up  near  the  creek  I 
suddenly  rode  in  among  a  herd  of  horses.  The  animals 
became  frightened  and  ran  off  in  every  direction.  « 

I  knew  at  once  that  I  was  among  Indian  horses,  and  had 
walked  into  the  wrong  pew ;  so  without  waiting  to  apologize, 
I  backed  out  as  quickly  as  possible.  At  this  moment  a  dog, 
not  fifty  yards  away,  set  up  a  howl,  and  then  I  heard  some 
Indians  engaged  in  conversation  ; — they  were  guarding  the 
horses,  and  had  been  sleeping.  Hearing  my  horse's  retreat- 
ing footsteps  toward  the  hills,  and  thus  becoming  aware  that 
there  had  been  an  enemy  in  their  camp,  they  mounted  their 
steeds  and  started  for  me. 

I  urged  my  horse  to  his  full  speed,  taking  the  chances  of 
his  falling  into  holes,  and  guided  him  up  the  creek  bottom. 
The  Indians  followed  me  as  fast  as  they  could  by  the  noise 
I  made,  but  I  soon  distanced  them ;  and  then  crossed  the 
creek. 

When  I  had  traveled  several  miles  in  a  straight  course,  as 
I  supposed,  I  took  out  my  compass  and  by  the  light  of  a 
match  saw  that  I  was  bearing  two  points  to  the  east  of 
north.  At  once  changing  my  course  to  the  direct  route,  I 
pushed  rapidly  on  through  the  darkness  towards  Smoky 
Hill  Eiver.  At  about  three  o'clock  in  the  morning  I  began 
traveling  more  cautiously,  as  I  was  afraid  of  running  into 
another  band  of  Indians.  Occasionally  I  scared  up  a  herd  of 
buffaloes,  or  antelopes,  or  coyotes,  ,or  deer,  which  would 
frighten  my  horse  for  a  moment,  but  with  the  exception  of 
these  slight  alarms  I  got  along1  all  right. 

After  crossing  Smoky  Hill  River,  I  felt  comparatively 
safe  as  this  was  the  last  stream  I  had  to  cross.  Eiding  on 


INTERVIEW  WITH  SHERIDAN. 


191 


to  the  northward  1  struck  the  old  Santa  Fe  trail,  ten  miles 
from  Fort  Hays,  just  at  break  of  day. 

My  horse  did  not  seem  much  fatigued,  and  being  anxious 
to  make  good  time  and  get  as  near  the  post  as  possible 
before  it  was  fairly  daylight  as  there  might  be  bands  of 
Indians  camped  along  Big  Creek,  I  urged  him  forward  as 
fast  as  he  could  go.  As  I  had  not  "lost"  any  Indians,  1  was- 
not  nOw  anxious  to  make  their  acquaintance,  and  shortly 
after  reveille  rode  into  the  post.  I  proceeded  directly  to 
General  Sheridan's  head- 
quarters, and  was  met  at 
the  door,  by  Colonel  Moore, 
aid-de-camp  on  General 
Sheridan's  staff  who  asked 
me  on  what  business  I  had 
come. 

"I  have  dispatches  for 
General  Sheridan,  and  my 
instructions  from  Captain 
Parker,  commanding  Fort 
Larned,  are  that  they  shall 
be  delivered  to  the  General 
as  soon  as  possible,"  said  I. 

Colonel  Moore  invited 
me  into  one  of  the  offices, 
and  said  he  would  hand  the 
dispatches  to  the  General 
as  soon  as  he  got  up. 

"  I  prefer  to  give  these  DELIVERING  DISPATCHES  TO  SHERIDAN. 
dispatches  to  General  Sheridan  myself,  and  at  once,"  was 
my  reply. 

The  General,  who  was  sleeping  in  the  same  building., 
hearing  our  voices,  called  out,  "  Send  the  man  in  with  the 
dispatches."  I  was  ushered  into  the  General's  presence,  and. 
as  we  bad  met  before  he  recognized  me  and  said : 

"  Hello,  Cody,  is  that  you  ?  " 


192  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

"  Yes,  sir ;  I  have  some  dispatches  here  for  you,  from 
Captain  Parker,"  said  I,  as  I  handed  the  package  over  to 
him. 

He  hurriedly  read  them,  and  said  they  were  important ; 
and  then  he  asked  me  all  about  General  Hazen  and  where 
he  had  gone,  and  about  the  breaking  out  of  the  Kiowas  and 
Comanches.  I  gave  him  all  the  information  that  I  possessed, 
and  related  the  events  and  adventures  of  the  previous  day 
and  night. 

"  Bill,"  said  he,  "  you  must  have  had  a  pretty  lively  ride. 
You  certainly  had  a  close  call' when  you  ran  into  the  Indians 
on  Walnut  Creek.  That  was  a  good  joke  that  you  played 
on  old  Satanta.  I  suppose  you're  pretty  tired  alter  your  long 
journey  ? " 

"  I  am  rather  weary,  General,  that's  a  fact,  as  I  have  been 
in  the  saddle  since  yesterday  morning;"  was  my  reply, 
'"  but  my  horse  is  more  tired  than  I  am,  and  needs  attention 
full  as  much  if  not  more,"  I  added.  Thereupon  the  General 
•called,  an  orderly  and  gave  instructions  to  have  my  animal 
well  -taken  care  of,  and  then  he  said,  "  Cody,  come  in  and 
have  some  breakfast  with  me." 

l"No,  thank  you,  General,"  said  I,  '"'Hays  City  is  only  a 
mile  from  here,  and  I  prefer  riding  over  there,  as  I  know 
about  every  one  in  the  town,  and  want  to  see  some  of  my 
friends." 

"Very  well ;  do  as  you  please,  and  come  to  the  post  after- 
wards as  I  want  to  see  you,"  said  he. 

"  Bidding  him  good-morning,  and  telling  him  that  I  would 
return  in  a  few  hours,  I  rode  over  to  Hays  City,  and  at  the 
Perry  House  I  met  many  of  my  old  friends  who  were  of 
course  all  glad  to  see  me.  I  took  some  refreshments  and 
a  two  hours  nap,  and  afterward  returned  to  Fort  Hays,  as  I 
was  requested. 

As  I  rode  up  to  the  headquarters  I  noticed  several  scouts 
in  a  little  group,  evidently  engaged  in  conversation  on  some 
important  matter.  Upon  inquiry  I  learned  that  General 


A  NINETY- FIVE  MILE  RIDE.  193 

Sheridan  had  informed  them  that  he  was  desirous  of  sending 
a  dispatch  to  Fort  Dodge,  a  distance  of  ninety -live  miles. 

The  Indians  had  recently  killed  two  or  three  men  while  they 
were  carrying  dispatches  between  Fort  Hays  and  Fort 
Dodge,  and  on  this  account  none  of  the  scouts  seemed  at  all 
anxious  to  volunteer,  although  a  reward  of  several  hundred 
dollars  was  offered  to  any  one  who  would  carry  the  dis- 
patches. They  had  learned  of  my  experiences  of  the  previous 
day,  and  asked  me  if  I  did  not  think  it  would  be  a  dangerous 
trip.  I  gave  it  as  my  opinion  that  a  man  might  possibly  go 
through  without  seeing  an  Indian,  but  that  the  chances  were 
ten  to  one  that  he  would  have  an  exceedingly  lively  run 
and  a  hard  time  before  he  reached  his  destination,  if  he  ever 
got  there  at  all. 

Leaving  the  scouts  to  decide  among  themselves  as  to  who 
was  to  go,  I  reported  to  General  Sheridan,  who  also 
informed  me  that  he  wished  some  one  to  carry  dispatches  to 
Fort  Dodge.  While  we  were  talking,  his  chief  of  scouts 
Dick  Parr,  entered  and  stated  that  none  of  the  scouts  had 
yet  volunteered.  Upon  hearing  this  I  got  my  "  brave"  up 
a  little,  and  said  : 

"  General,  if  there  is  no  one  ready  to  volunteer,  I'll  carry 
your  dispatches  myself." 

"Iliad  not  thought  of  asking  you  to  do  this  duty,  Cody, 
as  you  are  already  pretty  hard  worked.  But  it  is  really 
important  that  these  dispatches  should  go  through,"  said  the 
General. 

"  Well,  if  you  don't  get  a  courier  by  four  o'clock  this 
afternoon,  I'll  be  ready  for  business  at  that  time.  All  I 
want  is  a  fresh  horse,"  said  I;  4i  meantime  I'll  take  a  little 
more  rest." 

It  was  not  much  of  a  rest,  however,  that  I  got,  for  I  went 
over  to  Hays  City  again  and  had  ua  time  with  the  boys." 
I  came  back  to  the  post  at  the  appointed  hour,  and  finding 
that  no  one  had  volunteered,  I  reported  to  General  Sheri- 
dan. He  had  selected  an  excellent  horse  for  me,  and  on 
handing  me  the  dispatches  he  said: 


194:  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

"  You  can  start  as  soon  as  you  wish: — the  sooner  the  bet- 
ter; and  good  luck  go  with  you,  my  boy." 

In  about  an  hour  afterwards  I  was  on  the  road,  and  just 
before  dark  I  crossed  Smoky  Hill  River.  I  had  not  yet 
urged  my  horse  much,  as  I  was  saving  his  strength  for  the 
latter  end  of  the  route,  and  for  any  run  that  I  might  have 
to  make  in  case  the  "  wild-boys"  should  "jump"  me.  So 
far  I  had  not  seen  a  sign  of  Indians,  and  as  evening  came  on 
I  felt  comparatively  safe. 

I  had  no  adventures  worth  relating  during  the  night,  and 
just  before  daylight  I  found  myself  approaching  Saw-log 
Crossing,  on  the  Pawnee  Fork,  having  then  ridden  about 
seventy  miles. 

A  company  of  colored  cavalry,  commanded  by  Major  Cox, 
was  stationed  at  this  point,  and  I  approached  their  camp  cau- 
tiously, for  fear  that  the  pickets  might  fire  upon  me — as  the 
darkey  soldiers  were  liable  to  shoot  first  and  cry  "halt" 
afterwards.  When  within  hearing  distance  I  yelled  out  at 
the  top  of  my  voice,  and  was  answered  by  one  of  the  pickets. 
I  told  him  not  to  shoot,  as  I  was  a  scout  from  Fort  Hays ; 
and  then,  calling  the  sergeant  of  the  guard,  I  went  up  to  the 
vidette  of  the  post,  who  readily  recognized  me.  I  entered 
the  camp  and  proceeded  to  the  tent  of  Major  Cox,  to  whom 
I  handed  a  letter  from  General  Sheridan  requesting  him  to 
give  me  a  fresh  horse.  He  at  once  complied  with  the 
request. 

After  I  had  slept  an  hour  and  had  eaten  a  lunch,  I  again 
jumped  into  the  saddle,  and  before  sunrise  I  was  once  more 
on  the  road.  It  was  twenty-five  miles  to  Fort  Dodge,  and 
I  arrived  there  between  nine  and  ten  o'clock,  without  having 
seen  a  single  Indian. 

After  delivering  the  dispatches  to  the  commanding  officer, 
I  met  Johnny  Austin,  chief  of  scouts  at  this  post,  who  was 
an  old  friend  of  mine.  Upon  his  invitation  I  took  a  nap  at 
his  house,  and  when  I  awoke,  fresh  for  business  once  more, 
he  informed  me  that  the  Indians  had  been  all  around  the 


A  LONG  WALK.  195 

post  for  the  past  two  or  three  days,  running  off  cattle  and 
horses,  and  occasionally  killing  a  stray  man.  It  was  a  won- 
der to  him  that  I  had  met  with  none  of  the  red-skins  on  the 
way  there.  .The  Indians,  he  said,  were  also  very  thick  on 
the  Arkansas  River,  between  Fort  Dodge  and  Fort  Lamed, 
and  making  considerable  trouble.  Fort  Dodge  was  located 
sixty -five  miles  west  of  Fort  Earned,  the  latter  post  being  on 
the  Pawnee  .Fork,  about  five  miles  from  its  junction  with 
the  Arkansas  River. 

The  commanding  officer  at  Fort  Dodge  was  anxious  to 
send  some  dispatches  to  Fort  Earned,  but  the  scouts,  like 
those  at  Fort  Hays,  were  rather  backward  about  volunteer- 
ing, as  it  was  considered  a  very  dangerous  undertaking  to 
make  the  trip.  As  Fort  Earned  was  my  post,  and  as  I 
wanted  to  go  there  anyhow,  I  said  to  Austin  that  I  would 
carry  the  dispatches,  and  if  any  of  the  boys  wished  to 
go  along,  I  would  like  to  have  them  for  company's  sake. 
Austin  reported  my  offer  to  the  commanding  officer,  who 
sent  for  me  and  said  he  would  be  happy  to  have  me  take 
his  dispatches,  if  I  could  stand  the  trip  on  top  of  all. that 
I  had  already  done. 

"  All  I  want  is  a  good  fresh  horse,  sir,"  said  I. 

"  I  am  sorry  to  say  that  we  havent  a  decent  horse  here, 
but  we  have  a  reliable  and  honest  government  mule,  if  that 
will  do  you,"  said  the  officer. 

'"  Trot  out  your  mule,"  said  I,  "that's  good  enough  for  me. 
I  am  ready  at  any  time,  sir." 

The  mule  was  forthcoming,  and  at  dark  I  pulled  out  for 
Fort  Earned,and  proceeded  uninterruptedly  to  Coon  Creek, 
thirty  miles  out  from  Dodge.  I  had  left  the  main  wagon 
road  some  distance  to  the  south,  and  had  traveled  parallel 
with  it,  thinking  this  to  be  a  safer  course,  as  the  Indians 
might  be  lying  in  wait  on  the  main  road  for  dispatch  bearers 
and  scouts. 

At  Coon  Creek  I  dismounted  and  led  the  mule  by  the 
bridle  down  to  the  water,  where  I  took  a  drink,  using  my 


196  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

hat  for  a  dipper.  While  I  was  engaged  in  getting  the 
water,  the  mule  jerked  loose  and  struck  out  down  the 
creek.  I  followed  him  in  hopes  that  he  would  catch  his  foot 
in  the  bridle  rein  and  stop,  but  this  he  seemed,  to  have  no- 
idea  of  doing.  He  was  making  straight  for  the  wagon  roadr 
and  I  did  not  know  what  minute  he  might  run  into  a  band 
of  Indians.  He  finally  got  on  the  road,  but  instead  of  going 
back  toward  Fort  Dodge,  as  I  naturally  expected  he  would 
do,  he  turned  eastward  toward  Fort  Lamed,  and  kept  up  a, 
little  jog  trot  just  ahead  of  me,  but  would  not  let  me  come 
up  to  him,  although  I  tried  it  again  and  again.  1  had  my 
gun  in  my  hand,  and  several  times  I  was  strongly  tempted 
to  shoot  him,  and  would  probably  have  done  so  had  it  not 
been  for  fear  of  bringing  Indians  down  upon  me,  and 
besides  he  was  carrying  the  saddle  for  me.  So  I  trudged 
on  after  the  obstinate  "  critter,''  and  if  there  ever  was  a 
government  mule  that  deserved  and  received  a  good  round 
cursing  it  was  that  one.  I  had  neglected  the  precaution  of 
tying  one  end  of  my  lariat  to  his  bit  and  the  other  to  my 
belt,  as  I  had  done  a  few  nights  before,  and  I  blamed 
myself  for  this  gross  piece  of  negligence. 

Mile  after  mile  I  kept  on  after  that  mule,  and  every  once 
in  a  while  I  indulged  in  strong  language  respecting  the 
whole  mule  fraternity.  From  Coon  Creek  to  Fort  Lamed 
it  was  thirty-five  miles,  and  I  finally  concluded  that  my 
prospects  were  good  for  "hoofing"  the  whole  distance. 
We — that  is  to  say,  the  confounded  mule  and  myself — were 
making  pretty  good  time.  There  was  nothing  to  hold  the 
mule,  and  I  was  all  the  time  trying  to  catch  him — which 
urged  him  on.  I  made  every  step  count,  for  I  wanted  to 
reach  Fort  Larned  before  daylight,  in  order  to  avoid  if  possi- 
ble the  Indians,  to  whom  it  would  have  been  "  pie  "  to  have 
caught  me  there  on  foot. 

The  mule  stuck  to  the  road  and  kept  on  for  Larned,  and 
I  did  the  same  thing.  Just  as  day  was  beginning  to  break, 


THE  TWO  TRAMPS. 


197 


we — that  is  the  mule  and 
myself — found  ourselves 
on  a  hill  looking  down  into 
the  valley  of  the  Pawnee 
Fork,  in  which  Fort  Lar- 
ned  was  located,  only  four 
miles  away ;  and  when  the 
morning  gun  belched  forth 
we  were  within  half  a  mile 
of  the  post. 

"Now,"  said  I,  "Mr. 
Mule,  it  is  my  turn,"  and 
raising  my  gun  to.  my 
shoulder,  in  "dead  earn- 
est" this  time,  I  blazed 
away,  hitting  the  animal 
in  the  hip.  Throwing  a 
second  cartridge  into  the 
gun,  1  let  him  have  an- 
other shot,  and  I  con- 
tinued to  pour  the  lead 
into  him  until  I  had  him 
completely  laid  out.  Like 
the  great  majority  of  gov- 
ernment mules,  he  was  a 
tough  one  to  kill,  and  he 
clung  to  life  with  all  the 
tenaciousness  of  his  ob- 
stinate nature.  He  was, 
without  doubt,  the  tough- 
est and  meanest  mule  I 
ever  saw,  and  he  died 
hard. 

The  troops,  hearing  the 
reports  of  the  gun,  came 
rushing  out  to  see  what 


198  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

was  the  matter.  They  found  that  the  mule  had  passed  in 
his  chips,  and  when  they  learned  the  cause  they  all  agreed 
that  I  had  served  him  just  right.  Taking  the  saddle  and 
bridle  from  the  dead  body,  I  proceeded  into  the  post  and 
delivered  the  dispatches  to  Captain  Parker.  I  then  went 
over  to  Dick  Curtis'  house,  which  was  headquarters  for  the 
scouts,  and  there  put  in  several  hours  of  solid  sleep. 

During  the  day  General  Hazen  returned  from  Fort  Har- 
ker,  and  he  also  had  some  important  dispatches  to  send  to 
•General  Sheridan.  I  was  feeling  quite  elated  over  my  big 
ride ;  and  seeing  that  I  was  getting  the  best  of  the  other 
scouts  in  regard  to  making  a  record,  I  volunteered  to  carry 
General  Hazen's  dispatches  to  Fort  .Hays.  The  General 
accepted  my  services,  although  he  thought  it  was  unneces- 
sary lor  me  to  kill  myself.  1  told  him  that  1  had  business 
At  Fort  Hays,  and  wished  to  go  there  anyway,  and  it  would 
make  no  difference  to  the  other  scouts,  for  none  of  them 
appeared  willing  to  undertake  the  trip. 

Accordingly,  that  night  I  left  Fort  Earned  on  an  excellent 
horse,  and  next  morning  at  daylight  found  myself  once  more 
in  General  Sheridan's  headquarters  at  Fort  Hays.  The 
General  was  surprised  to  see  me,  and  still  more  so  when  I 
told  him  of  the  time  I  had  made  in  riding  to  Fort  Dodge, 
and  that  I  had  taken  dispatches  from  Fort  Dodge  to  Fort 
Lamed ;  and  when,  in  addition  to  this,  I  mentioned  my 
journey  of  the  night  previous,  General  Sheridan  thought 
my  ride  from  post  to  post,  taken  as  a  whole,  was  a  remark- 
able one,  and  he  said  that  he  did  not  know  of  its  equal.  I 
can  safely  say  that  I  have  never  heard  of  its  being  beaten  in 
a  country  infested  with  hostile  Indians. 

To  recapitulate  :  I  had  ridden  from  Fort  Larned  to  Fort 
Zarah  (a  distance  of  sixty -five  miles)  and  back  in  twelve 
hours,  including  the  time  when  I  was  taken  across  the 
Arkansas  by  the  Indians.  In  the  succeeding  twelve  hours 
I  had  gone  from  Fort  Larned  to  Fort  Hays,  a  distance  of 
sixty -five  miles.  In  the  next  twenty-four  hours  I  had  gone 


RECAPITULATION. 


199 


from  Fort  Hays  to  Fort  Dodge,  a  distance  of  ninety-five 
miles.  The  following  night  I  had  traveled  from  Fort  Dodge 
thirty  miles  on  muleback  and  thirty -five  miles  on  foot  to 
Fort  Larned ;  and  the  next  night  sixty-five  miles  more  to 
Fort  Hays.  Altogether  1  had  ridden  (and  walked)  355 
miles  in  fifty-eight  riding  hours,  or  an  average  of  over  six 
miles  an  hour.  Of  course,  this  may  not  be  regarded  as  very 
fast  riding,  but  taking  into  consideration  the  fact  that  it  was 
mostly  done  in  the  night  and  over  a  wild  country,  with  no 
roads  to  follow,  and  that  I  had  to  be  continually  on  the  look 
out  for  Indians,  it  was  thought  at  the  time  to  be  a  big  ride, 
as  well  as  a  most  dangerous  one. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

AN    APPOINTMENT. 

/GENERAL  SHERIDAN  highly  complimented  me  for 
\J~  what  I  had  done,  and  informed  me  that  I  need  not 
report  back  to  General  Hazen,  as  he  had  more  important 
work  for  me  to  do.  He  told  me  that  the  Fifth  Cavalry — 
one  of  the  finest  regiments  in  the  army — was  on  its  way  to 
the  Department  of  the  Missouri,  and  that  he  was  going  to 
send  it  on  an  expedition  against  the  Dog  Soldier  Indians, 
who  were  infesting  the  Republican  River  region. 

"Cody,"  continued  he,  "I  have  decided  to  appoint  you  as 
guide  and  chief  of  scouts  with  the  command.  How  does 
that  suit  you  ? " 

"  First-rate,  General,  and  I  thank  you  for  the  honor,"  I 
replied,  as  gracefully  as  I  knew  how. 

The  Dog  Soldier  Indians  were  a  band  of  Cheyennes  and 
unruly,  turbulent  members  of  other  tribes,  who  would 
not  enter  into  any  treaty,  or  keep  a  treaty  if  they  made  one, 
and  who  had  always  refused  to  go  upon  a  reservation.  They 
were  a  warlike  body  of  well-built,  daring  and  restless  braves, 
and  were  determined  to  hold  possession  of  the  country 
in  the  vicinity  of  the  Republican  and  Solomon  Rivers. 
They  were  called  "  Dog  Soldiers "  because  they  were  prin- 
cipally Cheyennes — a  name  derived  from  the  French  chieny 
a  dog. 

200 


GEN'L.  FORSYTH'S  EXPEDITION.  201 

After  my  conversation  with  the  General,  I  went  over  to 
Hays  City,  where  I  met  some  of  General  Forsyth's  scouts, 
who  had  just  returned  from  one  of  the  severest  battles  ever 
fought  with  the  In- 
dians. As  it  will  not 
be  out  of  place  in  this 
connection,  I  will  here 
give  a  brief  history  of 
that  memorable  event. 

The  Indians  had 
become  quite  trouble- 
some, and  General 
Sheridan  had  selected 
General  George  A.  f"\ 
Forsyth  to  go  out  on 
an  expedition,  and 

punish   them  for  their  GENERAL  PHIL.  SHERIDAN. 

recent  depredations.  There  was  a  scarcity  of  troops  at  Fort 
Hays  at  that  time,  so  General  Forsyth  recruited  a  com- 
pany of  frontiersmen  who  could  move  rapidly,  as  they  were 
to  carry  no  luggage,  and  were  to  travel  without  the  ordinary 
transportation.  Thirty  of  these  frontiersmen  came  from 
Fort  Harker,  and  twenty  from  Fort  Hays.  It  was  certainly 
a  small  body  of  men,  but  nearly  every  one  of  them  was  an 
experienced  hunter,  guide,  scout  and  Indian-fighter,  and 
they  could  fight  the  red-skins  in  their  own  way. 

In  four  days  they  were  prepared  to  take  the  field,  and  on 
the  morning  of  the  29th  of  August,  1868,  they  rode  out  of 
Fort  Hays  to  meet  the  Indians.  Lieutenant  F.  H.  Beecher, 
of  the  Third  Infantry,  nephew  of  Henry  Ward  Beecher, 
was  second  in  command ;  Brevet  Major-General  W.  H.  H. 
McCall,  who  had  been  in  the  volunteer  army,  acted  as  first 
sergeant ;  Dr.  John  Mowers,  of  Hays  City,  who  had  been  a 
volunteer  army  surgeon,  was  the  surgeon  of  the  expedition; 
and  Sharpe  Grover  was  the  chief  guide. 

Besting  at  Fort  Wallace,  they  started  September  10th,  for 


202  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

the  town  of  Sheridan,  thirteen  miles  distant,  where  a  band  of 
Indians  had  attacked  a  train,  killed  two  teamsters,  and  stolen 
some  cattle.  Arriving  at  Sheridan  they  easily  found  the 
Indian  trail,  and  followed  it  for  some  distance.  On  the 
eighth  day  out  from  Fort  Wallace,  the  command  went  into 
camp  late  in  the  afternoon,  on  the  Arickaree,  which  was 
then  not  more  than  eight  or  nine  feet  wide  at  that  point, 
and  only  two  or  three  inches  deep.  It  was  evident  to  the 
men  that  they  were  not  far  from  the  Indians,  and  it  was 
decided  that  the  next  day  they  would  find  them  and  give 
them  a  fight. 

Early  next  morning,  September  19th,  the  cry  of  "  Indians  " 
startled  the  command.  Every  man  jumped  for  h,is  horse. 
A  half-dozen  red-skins,  yelling  and  whooping  and  making  a 
hideous  racket,  and  firing  their  guns,  rode  up  and  attempted 
to  stampede  the  horses,  several  of  which,  together  with  the 
four  pack-mules,  were  so  frightened  that  they  broke  loose 
and  got  away.  The  Indians  then  rode  off,  followed  by  a 
few  shots.  In  a  minute  afterwards,  hundreds  of  Indian 
warriors — it  was  estimated  that  there  were  nearly  one  thou- 
sand— came  galloping  down  upon  the  command  from  every 
quarter,  completely  hemming  them  in. 

Acting  under  the  order  of  General-  Forsyth,  the  men 
retreated  to  a  small  island,  tied  their  horses  in  a  circle  to  the 
bushes,  and  then,  throwing  themselves  upon  the  ground, 
they  began  the  defense  by  firing  at  the  approaching  enemy, 
who  came  pretty  close  and  gave  them  a  raking  fire.  The 
besieged  scouts  at  the  first  opportunity  threw  up  a  small 
breastwork  with  their  knives.  The  firing,  however,  con- 
tinued back  and  forth,  and  early  in  the  fight  Forsyth  was 
twice  seriously  wounded — once  in  the  right  thigh,  and  once 
in  the  left  leg.  Dr.  Mowers  was  also  wounded  in  the  head, 
and  soon  died.  Two  other  men  had  been  killed,  and  several 
wounded.  All  the  horses  of  the  command  were  killed  by 
nine  o'clock  in  the  morning. 

Shortly  afterwards  over  three  hundred  Dog-Soldier  Indi- 


A  TERRIBLE  BATTLE.  203 

ans  commanded  by  old  "  Roman  Nose,"  charged  down  upon 
the  little  band  of  heroes,  giving  them  volley  after  volley ; 
but  finally  the  scouts,  at  a  favorable  opportunity,  returned 
their  fire  with  telling  effect.  "  Roman  Nose  "  and  "  Medicine 
Man  "  were  killed,  and  fell  from  their  horses  when  within  less 
than  one  rod  of  the  scouts,  who  thereupon  sent  up  a  trium- 
phant shout.  The  charging  braves  now  weakened,  and  in  a 
few  moments  they  were  driven  back.  It  was  a  brilliant 
charge,  arid  was  most  nobly  and  bravely  repulsed.  The 
scouts  had  again  suffered  severely,  having  several  men 
wounded,  among  the  number  being  Lieutenant  Beecherwho 
died  that  night.  The  Indians,  too,  had  had  quite  a  number 
killed,  several  of  whom  had  fallen  close  to  the  earthworks. 
The  dismounted  Indian  warriors  still  continued  firing,  but 
as  the  scouts  had  thrown  up  their  intrenchments  sufficiently 
to  protect  themselves  by  closely  hugging  the  ground,  little 
or  no  damage  was  done. 

A  second  charge  was  made  by  the  mounted  Indians  about 
two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  and  they  were  again  repulsed 
with  a  severe  loss.  Darkness  finally  came  on,  and  then  en- 
sued a  cessation  of  hostilities.  Two  of  the  scouts  had  been 
killed,  four  fatally  wounded,  and  fourteen  others  were 
wounded  more  or  less  severely.  There  were  just  twenty- 
eight  able-bodied  inen  left  out  of  the  fifty.  The  supplies 
had  run  out,  and  as  Dr.  Mowers  had  been  mortally  wounded 
and  the  medical  stores  captured,  the  wounded  men  could  not 
be  properly  cared  for. 

Although  they  were  entirely  surrounded,  and  one  hundred 
and  ten  miles  from  the  nearest  post,  the  men  did  not  despair. 
They  had  an  abundance  of  ammunition,  plenty  of  water, 
under  ground  only  a  short  distance,  and  for  food  they  had 
their  horses  and  mules.  At  night  two  of  the  scouts,  Tra- 
deau  and  Stillwell,  stole  through  the  lines  of  the  Indians, 
and  started  swiftly  for  Fort  Wallace  to  obtain  relief.  It 
was  a  dangerous  undertaking,  but  they  were  brave  and  ex- 
perienced scouts.  Stillwell  was  only  nineteen  or  twenty 


204 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


years  old,  but  he  was,  in  every  sense  of  the  word,  a  thorough- 
bred frontiersman. 

During  the  night  the  besieged  scouts  threw  up  their 
breastworks  considerably  higher  and  piled  the  dead  animals 
on  top.  They  dug  down  to  water,  and  also  stored  away  a 
lot  of  horse  and  mule  meat  in  the  sand  to  keep  it  fresh  as 
long  as  possible.  The  Indians  renewed  their  firing  next 


BATTLE    ON    THE.  ARICKARBE. 


morning,  and  kept  it  up  all  day,  doing  but  little  injury,  how- 
ever, as  the  scouts  were  now  well  entrenched ;  but  many  an 
Indian  was  sent  to  his  happy  hunting  ground. 

Night  came  again,  and  the  prospects  were  indeed  gloomy. 
An  attempt  was  made  by  two  more  of  the  scouts  to  creep 
through  the  Indian  lines,  but  they  were  detected  by  the 
enemy  and  had  to  return  to  their  comrades. 

The  next  morning  the  Indians  renewed  hostilities  as  usual. 


RELIEF.  205 

Their  women  and  children  began  to  disappear  about  noou, 
and  then  the  Indians  tried  to  draw  the  scouts  out  by  dis- 
playing a  white  flag  for  a  truce.  They  appeared  to  want  to 
have  a  talk  with  General  Forsy  th,  but  as  their  treachery  was 
well-known,  the  scouts  did  not  fall  into  this  trap.  The  Indi- 
ans had  apparently  become  tired  of  fighting,  especially  as 
they  found  that  they  had  a  most  stubborn  foe  to  deal  with. 

Night  once  more  threw  its  mantle  over  the  scene,  and 
under  the  cover  of  the  darkness  Donovan  and  Ply  ley,  two  of 
the  best  scouts,  stealthily  made  their  way  out  of  the  camp, 
and,  started  for  Fort  Wallace  with  a  dispatch  from  General 
Forsyth,  who  gave  a  brief  summary  of  the  situation,  and 
stated  that  if  necessary  he  could  hold  out  for  six  days  longer. 

When  the  day  dawned  again,  only  a  small  number  of 
warriors  could  be  seen,  and  they  probably  remained  to  watch 
the  scouts  and  keep  them  corraled.  The  uninjured  men  at- 
tended to  the  wounded  as  well  as  they  could  under  the 
adverse  circumstances,  but  from  want  of  proper  treatment, 
evidences  of  gangrene  appeared  in  some  of  the  wounds  on 
the  sixth  day.  The  mule  and  horse  meat  became  totally  un- 
fit for  use,  but  they  had  nothing  else  to  eat,  and  had  to  eat 
it  or  starve.  Under  these  trying  circumstances  the  General 
told  the  men  that  any  who  wished  to  go  might  do  so,  and 
take  their  chances ;  but  they  all  resolved  to  remain,  and  die 
together,  if  need  be. 

Relief  came  at  last.  Tradeau  and  Still  well  had  safely 
reached  Fort  Wallace,  and  on  the  morning  of  the  25th  of 
September,  Colonel  Carpenter  and  a  detachment  of  cavalry 
arrived  with  supplies.  This  assistance  to  the  besieged  and 
starving  scouts  came  like  a  vessel  to  ship-wrecked  men  drift- 
ing and  starving  on  a  raft  in  mid-ocean. 

It  was  with  the  survivors  of  this  terrible  fight  that  I  spent 
the  few  days  at  Hays  City,  prior  to  the  arrival  of  the  Fifth 
Cavalry. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

SCOUTING. 

ON  the  third  day  of  October  the  Fifth  Cavalry  arrived  at 
Fort  Hays,  and  I  at  once  began  making  the  acquaint- 
ance of  the  different  officers  of  the  regiment.  I  was  intro- 
duced by  General  Sheridan  to  Colonel  William  Royal,  who 
was  in  command  of  the  regiment.  He  was  a  gallant  officer, 
and  an  agreeable  and  pleasant  gentleman.  He  is  now  sta- 
tioned at  Omaha  as  Inspector  General  in  the  department  of 
of  the  Flatte.  I  also  became  acquainted  with  Major  "W".  H. 
Brown,  Major  Walker,  Captain  Sweetman,  Quartermaster 
E.  M.  Hays,  and  in  fact  all  the  officers  of  the  regiment. 

General  Sheridan,  being  anxious  to  punish  the  Indians 
who  had  lately  fought  General  Forsyth,  did  not  give  the 
regiment  much  of  a  rest,  and  accordingly  on  the  5th  of 
October  it  began  its  march  for  the  Beaver  Creek  country. 
The  first  night  we  camped  on  the  South  fork  of  Big  Creek, 
four  miles  west  of  Hays  City.  By  this  time  I  had  become 
pretty  well  acquainted  with  Major  Brown  and  Captain 
Sweetman,  who  invited  me  to  mess  with  them  on  this  expe- 
dition ;  and  a  jolly  mess  we  had.  There  were  other  scouts 
in  the  command  besides  myself,  and  I  particularly  remember 
Tom  Renahan,  Hank  Fields  and  a  character  called  "  Nosey  " 
on  account  of  his  long  nose. 

On  the  morning  of  the  6th  we  pulled  out  to  the  north, 

206 


THE  FIFTH  CAVALRY.  20T 

and  during  the  day  I  was  very  favorably  struck  with  the 
appearance  of  the  regiment.  It  was  a  beautiful  command, 
and  when  strung  out  on  the  prairie  with  a  train  of  seventy- 
five  six-mule  wagons,  ambulances  and  pack  mules,  I  felt  very 
proud  of  my  position  as  guide  and  chief  of  scouts  of  such  a 
warlike  expedition. 

Just  as  we  were  about  to  go  into  camp  on  the  Saline  river 
that  night,  we  ran  on  to  a  band  of  about  fifteen  Indians, 
who,  seeing  us,  dashed  across  the  creek,  followed  by  some 
bullets  which  we  sent  after  them ;  but  as  the  small  band 
proved  to  be  a  scouting  party,  we  pursued  them  only  a  mile 
or  two,  when  our  attention  was  directed  to  a  herd  of  buffaloes 
— they  being  very  plenty — and  we  succeeded  in  killing  ten 
or  fifteen  for  the  command. 

The  next  day  we  inarched  thirty  miles,  and  late  in  the 
afternoon  we  went  into  camp  on  the  South  fork  of  the  Solo- 
mon. At  this  encampment  Colonel  Royal  asked  me  to  go- 
out  and  kill  some  buffaloes  for  the  boys. 

u  All  right,  Colonel,  send  along  a  wagon  or  two  to  bring" 
in  the  meat,"  I  said. 

"  I  am  not  in  the  habit  of  sending  out  my  wagons  until  I 
know  that  there  is  something  to  be  hauled  in ;  kill  your  buf- 
falo first  and  then  I'll  send  out  the  wagons,"  was  the  Colo- 
nel's reply.  I  said  no  more,  but  went  out  on  a  hunt,  and! 
after  a  short  absence  returned  and  asked  the  Colonel  to  send 
his  wagons  over  the  hill  for  the  half  dozen  buffaloes  I 
had  killed. 

The  following  afternoon  he  again  requested  me  to  go  out 
and  get  some  fresh  buffalo  meat.  I  didn't  ask  him  for  any 
wagons  this  time,  but  rode  out  some  distance,  and  coming 
up  with  a  small  herd,  I  managed  to  get  seven  of  them  headed 
straight  for  the  encampment,  and  instead  of  shooting  them 
just  then,  I  ran  them  at  full  speed  right  into  the  camp,, 
and  then  killed  them  all,  one  after  the  other  in  rapid  suc- 
cession. Colonel  Royal  witnessed  the  whole  proceeding, 
which  puzzled  him  somewhat;  as  he  could  see  no  reason  why 


208 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


I  liad  not  killed  them  on  the  prairie.  He  came  up,  rather 
angrily,  and  demanded  an  explanation.  "  I  can't  allow  any 
such  business  as  this,  Cody,"  said  he,  "  what  do  you  mean 
by  it?" 

"  I  didirt  care  about  asking  for  any  wagons  this  time, 
•Colonel ;  so  I  thought  I  would  make  the  buffaloes  furnish 
their  own  transportation,"  was  my  reply.  The  Colonel  saw 
the  point  in  a  moment,  and  had  no  more  to  say  on  the  subject. 

No  Indians  had  been  seen  in  the  vicinity  during  the  day, 


BRINGING  MEAT  INTO  CAMP. 


and  Colonel  Royal  having  carefully  posted  his  pickets,  sup- 
posed everything  was  serene  for  the  night.  But  before 
morning  we  were  roused  from  our  slumbers  by  hearing  shots 
fired,  and  immediately  afterwards  one  of  the  mounted 
pickets  came  galloping  into  camp,  saying  that  there  were 
Indians  close  at  hand.  The  companies  all  fell  into  line,  and 
were  soon  prepared  and  anxious  to  give  the  red-skins  battle; 
but  as  the  men  were  yet  new  in  the  Indian  country  a  great 


A  FALSE  ALARM. 


209 


many  of  them  were  considerably  excited.  No  Indians,  how- 
ever, made  their  appearance,  and  upon  going  to  the  picket- 
post  where  the  picket  said  he  had  seen  them,  none  could  be 
found,  nor  could  any  traces  of  them  be  discovered.  The 
sentinel,— who  was  an  Irishman— insisted  that  there  cer- 
tainly had  been  red-skins 
there. 

"  But  you  must  be  mis- 
taken," said  Colonel  Royal. 

"  Upon  me  sowl,  Colonel, 
I'm  not;  as  shure  ez  me 
name's  Pat  Maloney,  one 
of  thim  rid  divils  hit  me  on 
the  head  wid  a  club,  so  he 
did,"  said  Pat;  and  so, 
when  morning  came,  the 
mystery  was  further  inves- 
tigated and  was  easily 
solved.  Elk  tracks  were 
found  in  the  vicinity  and  it 
was  undoubtedly  a  herd  of 
elks  that  had  frightened 
Pat;  as  he  had  turned  to 
run,  lie  had  gone  under  a 
limb  of  a  tree,  against  "INDIANS!" 

which  he  hit  his  head,  and  supposed  he  had  been  struck  by 
a  club  in  the  hands  of  an  Indian.  It  was  hard  to  convince 
Pat  however,  of  the  truth. 

A  three  days  uninteresting  march  brought  us  to  Beaver 
Creek  where  we  camped  and  from  which  point  scouting 
parties  were  sent  out  in  different  directions.  Neither  of  these 
parties  discovering  Indians  they  all  returned  to  camp  about 
the  same  time,  finding  it  in  a  state  of  great  excitement,  it  hav- 
ing been  attacked  a  few  hours  previous  by  a  party  of  Indians, 
who  had  succeeded  in  killing  two  men  and  in  making  off 
with  sixty  horses  belonging  to  Co.  H. 


210 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


That  evening  the  command  started  on  the  trail  of  these 
Indian  horse-thieves ;  Major  Brown  with  two  companies  and 
three  days  rations  pushing  ahead  in  advance  of  the  main 
command.  Being  unsuccessful,  however,  in  overtaking  the 
Indians,  and  getting  nearly  out  of  provisions — it  being  our 
eighteenth  day  out,  the  entire  command  marched  towards  the 
nearest  railroad  point,  and  camped  on  the  Saline  River ;  dis- 
tant three  miles  from  Buffalo  Tank. 

While  waiting  for  supplies  we  received  a  new  commanding 
officer,  Brevet  Major-General  E.  A.  Carr,  who  was  the  senior 
major  of  the  regiment,  and  who  ranked  Colonel  Royal.  He 

brought  with  him 
the  now  celebrated 
Forsyth  scouts,  who 
were  commanded  by 
Lieutenant  Pepoon, 
a  regular  army  of- 
ficer. 

It  was  also  while 
waiting  in  this  camp 
that  Major  Brown 
received  a  new  lieu- 
tenant to  fill  a  va- 
cancy in  his  com- 
pany. On  the  day 
that  this  officer  was  to  arrive,  Major  Brown  had  his  private 
ambulance  brought  out,  and  invited  me  to  accompany  him  to 
the  railroad  station  to  meet  his  lieutenant,  whose  name  was 
A.  B.  Bache.  He  proved  to  be  a  fine  gentleman,  and  a 
brave,  dashing  officer.  On  the  way  to  the  depot  Major 
Brown  had  said,  "  Now,  Cody,  when  we  come  back  we'll 
give  Bache  a  lively  ride  and  shake  him  up  a  little." 

Major  Brown  was  a  jolly  good  fellow,  but  sometimes  he 
would  get  "  a  little  off,"  and  as  this  was  one  of  his  "  off 
days  "  he  was  bound  to  amuse  himself  in  some  original  and 
mischievous  way.  Reaching  the  depot  just  as  the  train 


GEN'L  E.  A.  CARR. 


INITIATING  A  NEW  LIEUTENANT.  211 

came  in,  we  easily  found  the  Lieutenant,  and  giving  him 
the  back  seat  in  the  ambulance  we  were  soon  headed  for 
camp. 

Pretty  soon  Major  Brown  took  the  reins  from  his  driver, 
and  at  once  began  whipping  the  mules.  After  getting  them 
into  a  lively  gallop  he  pulled  out  his  revolver  and  fired  sev- 
eral shots.  The  road  was  terribly  rough  and  the  night  was 
so  dark  that  we  could  hardly  see  where  we  were  going.  It 
was  a  wonderful  piece  of  luck  that  we  were  not  tipped  over 
and  our  necks  broken.  Finally  Bache  said,  good-humoredly : 

"Is  this  the  way  you  break  in  all  your  Lieutenants, 
Major?" 

"  Oh,  no  ;  I  don't  do  this  as  a  regular  thing,  but  it's  the  way 
we  frequently  ride  in  this  country,"  said  the  Major;  "just 
keep  your  seat,  Mr.  Bache, -and  we'll  take  you  through  on 
time."  The  Major  appropriated  the  reply  of  the  old  Cali- 
fornia stage  driver,  Hank  Monk,  to  Horace  Greely. 

We  were  now  rattling  down  a  steep  hill  at  full  speed,  and 
just  as  we  reached  the  bottom,  the  front  wheels  struck  a 
deep  ditch  over  which  the  mules  had  jumped.  We  were  all 
brought  up  standing  by  the  sudden  stoppage  of  the  ambu- 
lance. Major  Brown  and  myself  were  nearly  pitched  out  on 
the  wheels,  while  the  Lieutenant  came  flying  headlong  from 
the  back  seat  to  the  front  of  the  vehicle. 

"  Take  a  back  seat,  Lieutenant,"  coolly  said  Major  Brown. 

"  Major,  I  have  just  left  that  seat,"  said  Bache. 

We  soon  lifted  the  wagon  out  of  the  ditch,  and  then  re- 
sumed our  drive,  running  into  camp  under  full  headway, 
and  creating  considerable  amusement.  Every  one  recognized 
the  ambulance  and  knew  at  once  that  Major  Brown  and  I 
were  out  on  a  "lark,"  and  therefore  there  was  not  much  said 
about  our  exploit.  Halting  with  a  grand  flourish  in  front  of  his 
tent.  Major  Brown  jumped  out  in  his  most  gallant  style  and 
politely  asked  his  lieutenant  in.  A  very  pleasant  evening 
was  spent  there,  quite  a  number  of  the  officers  calling  to 
make  the  acquaintance  of  the  new  officer,  who  entertained 


212  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

the  visitors  with  an  amusing  account  of  the  ride  from  the 
depot. 

JSText  morning  at  an  early  hour,  the  command  started  out 
on  a  hunt  for  Indians.  General  Carr  having  a  pretty  good 
idea  where  he  would  be  most  likely  to  find  them,  directed 
me  to  guide  him  by  the  nearest  route  to  Elephant  Eock  on 
Beaver  Creek. 

Upon  arriving  at  the  south  fork  of  the  Beaver  on  the  sec- 
ond day's  march,  we  discovered  a  large,  fresh  Indian  trail 
which  we  hurridly  followed  for  a  distance  of  eight  miles, 
when  suddenly  we  saw  on  the  bluffs  ahead  of  us,  quite  a 
large  number  of  Indians. 

General  Carr  ordered  Lieutenant  Pepoon's  scouts  and  Com. 
pany  M  to  the  front.  This  company  was  commanded  by 
Lieutenant  Schinosky,  a  Frenchman  by  birth  and  a  reckless 
dare-devil  by  nature,  who  was  anxious  to  have  a  hair-lifting 
match.  Having  advanced  his  company  nearly  a  mile  ahead 
of  the  main  command,  about  four  hundred  Indians  suddenly 
charged  down  upon  him  and  gave  him  a  lively  little  fight, 
until  he  was  supported  by  our  full  force. 

The  Indians  kept  increasing  in  numbers  all  the  while  until 
it  was  estimated  that  we  were  fighting  from  eight  hundred 
to  one  thousand  of  them.  The  engagement  became  quite 
general,  and  several  were  killed  and  wounded  on  each  side. 
The  Indians  were  evidently  fighting  to  give  their  families 
and  village,  a  chance  to  get  away.  We  had  undoubtedly 
surprised  them  with  a  larger  force  than  they  had  ex- 
pected to  see  in  that  part  of  the  country.  We  fought  them 
until  dark,  all  the  time  driving  them  before  us.  At  night 
they  annoyed  us  considerably  by  firing  down  into  our  camp 
from  the  higher  hills,  and  several  times  the  command  was 
ordered  out  to  dislodge  them  from  their  position  and  drive 
them  back. 

After  having  returned  from  one  of  these  little  sallies, 
Major  Brown,  Captain  Sweet  man ,  Lieutenant  Bache  and 
myself  were  taking  supper  together,  when  "  whang  !  "  came 


A  CRACK  SHOT. 


213 


a  bullet  into  Lieutenant 
Bache's  plate,  breaking  a 
hole  through  it.  The  bul- 
let came  from  the  gun  of 
one  of  the  Indians,  who 
had  returned  to  the  high 
bluff  over-looking  our  camp. 
Major  Brown  declared  it 
was  a  crack  shot,  because 
it  broke  the  plate.  We 
finished  our  supper  with- 
out having  any  more  such 
close  calls. 

At  daylight  next  morn- 
ing we  struck  out  on  the 
trail,  and  soon  came  to  the 
spot  where  the  Indians  had 
camped  the  day  before. 
We  could  see  that  their  vil- 
lage was  a  very  large  one, 
consisting  of  about  five 
hundred  lodges ;  and  we 
pushed  forward  rapidly 
from  this  point  on  the 
trail  which  ran  back  toward 
Prairie  Dog  Creek. 

About  two  o'clock  we 
came  in  sight  of  the  retreat- 
ing village,  and  soon  the 
warriors  turned  back  to 
give  us  battle.  They  set 
fire  to  the  prairie  grass  in 
front  of  us,  and  on  all 
sides,  in  order  to  delay  us 
as  much  as  possible.  We 
kept  up  a  running  fight 
for  the  remainder  of  the 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

afternoon,  and  the  Indians  repeatedly  attempted  to  lead 
us  off  the  track  of  their  flying  village,  but  their  trail  was 
easily  followed,  as  they  were  continually  dropping  tepee 
poles,  camp  kettles,  robes,  furs  and  all  heavy  articles  belong- 
ing to  them.  They  were  evidently  scattering,  and  it  finally 
became  difficult  for  us  to  keep  on  the  main  trail.  When 
darkness  set  in,  we  went  into  camp,  it  being  useless  to  try  to 
follow  the  Indians  after  nightfall. 

Next  morning  we  were  again  on  the  trail,  which  led  north, 
and  back  towards  the  Beaver  Creek,  which  stream  it  crossed 
within  a  few  miles  of  the  spot  where  we  had  first  discovered 
the  Indians,  they  having  made  nearly  a  complete  circle,  in 
•hopes  of  misleading  us.  Late  in  the  afternoon,  we  again 
saw  them  going  over  a  hill  far  ahead  of  us,  and  towards 
evening  the  main  body  of  warriors  came  back  and  fought  us 
once  more  ;  but  we  continued  to  drive  them  until  darkness 
set  in,  when  we  camped  for  the  night. 

The  Indians  soon  scattered  in  every  direction,  but  we  fol- 
lowed the  main  trail  to  the  Republican  river,  where  we  made 
a  cut-off,  and  then  went  north  towards  thePlatte  river.  We 
found,  however,  that  the  Indians  by  traveling  night  and  day 
had  got  a  long  start,  and  the  General  concluded  that  it  was 
useless  to  follow  them  any  further,  as  we  had  pushed  them 
€0  hard,  and  given  them  such  a  scare  that  they  would  leave 
the  Republican  country  and  go  north  across  the  Union 
Pacific  railroad.  Most  of  the  Indians,  as  he  had  predicted, 
did  cross  thePlatte  river,  near  Ogallala,  on  the  Union  Pacific, 
and  thence  continued  northward. 

That  night  we  returned  to  the  Republican  river  and 
camped  in  a  grove  of  cottonwoods,  which  I  named  Carr's 
Grove,  in  honor  of  the  commanding  officer. 

The  General  told  me  that  the  next  day's  march  would  be 
towards  the  head-waters  of  the  Beaver,  and  he  asked  me  the 
distance.  I  replied  that  it  was  about  twenty-five  miles,  and 
he  said  we  would  make  it  the  next  day.  Getting  an  early 
start  in  the  morning,  we  struck  out  across  the  prairie,  my 


A  WATER  QUESTION.  215 

position  as  guide  being  ahead  of  the  advance  guard.  About 
two  o'clock  General  Carr  overtook  me,  and  asked  how  far 
I  supposed  it  was  to  water.  I  thought  it  was  about  eight 
miles,  although  we  could  see  no  sign  or  indication  of  any 
stream  in  our  front. 

"  Pepoon's  scouts  say  that  you  are  going  in  the  wrong 
direction, "  said  the  General,  "  and  in  the  way  you  are  bear- 
ing it  will  be  fifteen  miles  before  you  can  strike  any  of  the 
branches  of  the  Beaver;  and  that  when  you  do,  you  will 
find  no  water,  for  the  Beavers  are  dry  at  this  time  of  the 
year  at  that  point." 

"General,  I  think  the  scouts  are  mistaken,"  said  I,  "for 
the  Beaver  has  more  water  near  its  head  than  it  has  below ; 
and  at  the  place  where  we  will  strike  the  stream  we  will  find 
immense  beaver  dams,  large  enough  and  strong  enough  to 
cross  the  whole  command,  if  you  wish." 

"Well,  Cody,  go  ahead,"  said  he,  "I'll  leave  it  to  you, 
but  remember  that  I  don't  want  a  dry  camp." 

"  No  danger  of  that,"  said  I,  and  then  I  rode  on,  leaving 
liim  to  return  to  the  command.  As  I  had  predicted,  we 
found  water  seven  or  eight  miles  further  on,  where  we  came 
upon  a  beautiful  little  stream — a  tributary  of  the  Beaver — 
hidden  in  the  hills.  We  had  no  difficulty  in  selecting  a  good 
halting  place,  and  obtaining  fresh  spring  water  and  excellent 
grass.  The  General,  upon  learning  from  me  that  the  stream 
— which  was  only  eight  or  nine  miles  long — had  no  name, 
took  out  his  map  and  located  it,  and  named  it  Cody's  Creek, 
which  name  it  still  bears. 

We  pulled  out  early  next  morning  for  the  Beaver,  and 
when  we  were  approaching  the  stream  I  rode  on  ahead  of 
the  advance  guard,  in  order  to  find  a  crossing.  Just  as  I 
turned  a  bend  of  the  creek,  "  bang ! "  went  a  shot,  and  down 
•went  my  horse — myself  with  him.  I  disentangled  myself, 
and  jumped  behind  the  dead  body.  Looking  in  the  direc- 
tion whence  the  shot  had  come,  I  saw  two  Indians,  and  at 
once  turned  niy  gun  loose  on  them,  but  in  the  excitement 
13 


216  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

of  the  moment  I  missed  my  aim.  They  fired  two  or  three 
more  shots,  and  I  returned  the  compliment,  wounding  one 
of  their  horses. 

On  the  opposite  side  of  the  creek,  going  over  the  hill,  I 
observed  a  few  lodges  moving  rapidly  away,  and  also  Borne 
mounted  warriors,  who  could  see  me,  and  who  kept  blazing 
away  with  their  guns.  The  two  Indians  who  had  fired  at 
me  and  had  killed  my  horse  were  retreating  across  the  creek 
on  a  beaver  dam.  I  sent  a  few  shots  after  them  to  accel- 
erate their  speed,  and  also  fired  at  the  ones  on  the  other 
side  of  the  stream.  I  was  undecided  as  to  whether  it  was 
best  to  run  back  to  the  command  on  foot  or  hold  my  position. 
I  knew  that  within  a  few  minutes  the  troops  would  come 
up,  and  if  they  heard  the  firing  they  would  come  rapidly. 

The  Indians,  seeing  that  I  was  alone,  turned  and  charged 
down  the  hill,  and  were  about  to  re-cross  the  creek  to  corral 
me,  when  the  advance  guard  of  the  command  put  in  an 
appearance  on  the  ridge,  and  dashed  forward  to  my  rescue. 
The  red-skins  whirled  and  made  off. 

When  General  Carr  came  up,  he  ordered  Company  I 
to  go  in  pursuit*  of  the  band.  I  accompanied  Lieutenant 
Brady,  who  commanded,  and  we  had  a  running  fight  with 
the  Indians,  lasting  several  hours.  "We  captured  several 
head  of  their  horses  and  most  of  their  lodges.  At  night  we 
returned  to  the  command,  which  by  this  time  had  crossed 
the  creek  on  the  beaver  dam. 

"We  scouted  for  several  days  along  the  river,  and  had  two 
or  three  lively  skirmishes.  Finally  our  supplies  began  to 
run  low,  and  General  Carr  gave  orders  to  return  to  Fort 
Wallace,  which  we  reached  three  days  afterwards,  and  where 
we  remained  several  days. 

While  the  regiment  was  waiting  here  for  order?,  I  spent 
most  of  the  time  in  hunting  buffaloes,  and  one  day  while  I 
was  out  with  a  small  party,  we  were  "jumped"  by  about 
fifty  Indians.  We  had  a  severe  fight  of  at  least  an  hour, 
when  we  succeeded  in  driving  the  enemy.  They  lost  four 


A  LIVELY  FIGHT. 


217 


of  their  warriors,  and  probably  concluded  that  we  were  a 
hard  crowd.     I  had  some  excellent  marksmen  with  me,  and 


they  did  some  fine 
work,  sending  the 
bullets  thick  and 
fast  where  they 
A  HARD  CROWD.  would  do  the  most 

good.  Two  or  three  of  our  horses  had  been  hit,  and  one 
man  had  been  wounded  ;  we  were  ready  and  willing  to  stay 
with  the  red-skins  as  long  as  they  wished — but  they  finally 
gave  it  up  however,  as  a  bad  job,  and  rode  off.  "We  finished 
our  hunt,  and  went  back  to  the  post  loaded  down  with 
plenty  of  buffalo  meat,  and  received  the  compliments  of  the 
General  for  our  little  tight. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

A   TOUGH    TIME. 

riEISTERAL  CARR  soon  received  orders  from  General 
\-A  Sheridan  that  he  was  to  make  a  winter's  campaign  in 
the  Canadian  river  country,  and  that  we  were  to  proceed  to 
Fort  Lyon,  on  the  Arkansas  river,  in  Colorado,  and  there  fit 
out  for  the  expedition.  Leaving  Fort  Wallace  in  November, 
1868,  we  arrived  at  Fort  Lyon  in  the  latter  part  of  the 
month,  and  outfitted  for  the  coming  expedition. 

General  Penrose  had  left  this  post  three  weeks  previously 
with  a  command  of  some  three  hundred  men.  He  had 
taken  no  wagons  with  him  and  his  supply  train  was  com- 
posed only  of  pack  mules.  General  Carr  was  ordered  to 
follow  with  supplies  on  his  trail  and  overtake  him  as  soon  as 
possible.  I  was  particularly  anxious  to  catch  up  with  Pen- 
rose's  command,  as  my  old  friend  Wild  Bill  was  among  his 
scouts.  We  followed  the  trail  very  easily  for  the  first  three 
days,  and  then  we  were  caught  in  Freeze-Out  canyon  by  a 
fearful  snow  storm,  which  compelled  us  to  go  into  camp 
for  a  day.  The  ground  now  being  covered  with  snow,  we 
found  that  it  would  be  almost  impossible  to  follow  Pen- 
rose's  trail  any  further,  especially  as  he  had  left  no 
sign  to  indicate  the  direction  he  was  going.  General 
Carr  sent  for  me  and  said  that  as  it  was  very  important 
that  we  should  not  lose  the  trail,  he  wished  that  I  would 

218 


CAMPING  IN  THE  SNOW. 


OUT  IN  A  SNOW  STORM.  221 

take  some  scouts  with  me,  and  while  the  command  re- 
mained in  camp,  push  on  as  far  as  possible  and  see  if  I  could 
not  discover  some  traces  of  Penrose  or  where  he  had  camped 
at  any  time. 

Accompanied  by  four  men  I  started  out  in  the  blinding 
snow  storm,  taking  a  southerly  direction.  We  rode  twenty- 
four  miles,  and  upon  reaching  a  tributary  of  the  Cimarron, 
we  scouted  up  and  down  the  stream  for  a  few  miles  and 
finally  found  one  of  Penrose's  old  camps.  It  was  now  late 
in  the  afternoon,  and  as  the  command  would  come  up  the 
next  day,  it  was  not  necessary  for  all  of  us  to  return  with 
the  information  to  General  Carr.  So  riding  down  into  a 
sheltered  place  in  a  bend  of  the  creek,  we  built  a  fire  and 
broiled  some  venison  from  a  deer  which  we'had  shot  during 
the  day,  and  after  eating  a  substantial  meal,  I  left  the  four 
men  there,  while  I  returned  to  bring  up  the  troops. 

It  was  eleven  o'clock  at  night  when  I  got  back  to  the 
carnp.  A  light  was  still  burning  in  the  General's  tent,  he 
having  remained  awake,  anxiously  awaiting  my  return.  He 
was  glad  to  see  me,  and  was  overjoyed  at  the  information  I 
brought,  for  he  had  great  fears  concerning  the  safety  of  Gen- 
eral Penrose.  He  roused  np  his  cook  and  ordered  him  to 
get  me  a  good  hot  supper,  all  of  which  I  greatly  appreciated. 
I  passed  the  night  in  the  General's  tent,  and  next  morning 
rose  refreshed  and  prepared  for  a  big  day's  work. 

The  command  took  up  its  march  next  day  for  the  Cimar- 
ron, and  had  a  hard  tramp  of  it  on  account  of  the  snow  hav- 
ing drifted  to  a  great  depth  in  many  of  the  ravines,  and  in 
some  places  the  teamsters  had  to  shovel  their  way  through. 
We  arrived  at  the  Cimarron  at  sundown,  and  went  into  a 
nice  warm  carnp.  Upon  looking  around  next  morning,  we 
found  that  Penrose,  having  been  unencumbered  by  wagons, 
had  kept  on  the  west  side  of  the  Cimarron,  and  the  country 
was  so  rough  that  it  was  impossible  for  us  to  stay  on  his  trail 
with  our  wagons;  but  knowing  that  he  would  certainly  follow  • 
down  the  river,  General  Carr  concluded  to  take  the  best 


222  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

wagon  route  along  the  stream,  which  I  discovered  to  be  on 
the  east  side.  Before  we  could  make  any  headway  with  our 
wagon  train  we  had  to  leave  the  river  and  get  out  on  the 
divide.  "We  were  very  fortunate  that  day  in  finding  a  splen- 
did road  for  some  distance,  until  we  were  all  at  once  brought 
up  standing  on  a  high  table-land,  overlooking  a  beautiful 
winding  creek  that  lay  far  below  us  in  the  valley.  The 
question  that  troubled  us,  was,  how  we  were  to  get  the  wagons 
down.  We  were  now  in  the  foot-hills  of  the  Rattoon  Moun- 
tains, and  the  bluff  we  were  on  was  very  steep. 

"  Cody,  we're  in  a  nice  fix  now,"  said  General  Carr. 

"  Oh,  that's  nothing,"  was  my  reply. 

"  But  you  can  never  take  the  train  down,"  said  he. 

"Never  you  mind  the  train,  General.  You  say  you  are 
looking  for  a  good  camp.  How  does  that  beautiful  spot 
down  in  the  valley  suit  you  ? "  I  asked  him. 

"  That  will  do.  I  can  easily  descend  with  the  cavalry, 
but  how  to  get  the  wagons  down  there  is  a  puzzler  to  me," 
said  he. 

"  By  the  time  you've  located  your  camp,  your  wagons 
shall  be  there,"  said  I. 

"  All  right,  Cody,  I'll  leave  it  to  you,  as  you  seem  to 
want  to  be  boss,"  replied  he  pleasantly.  lie  at  once 
ordered  the  command  to  dismount  and  lead  the  horses  down 
the  mountain-side.  The  wagon  train  was  a  mile  in  the  rear, 
and  when  it  came  up,  one  of  the  drivers  asked  :  "  How  are 
we  going  down  there  ? " 

"Run  down,  slide  down  or  fall  down — anyway  to  get 
down,"  said  I. 

"  We  never  can  do  it ;  it's  too  steep  ;  the  wagons  will  run 
over  the  mules,"  said  another  wagon-master. 

"I  guess  not;  the  mules  have  got  to  keep  out  of  the 
way,"  was  my  reply. 

Telling  Wilson,  the  chief  wagon-master,  to  bring  on  his 
mess-wagon,  which  was  at  the  head  of  the  train,  I  said  I 
would  try  the  experiment  at  least.  Wilson  drove  the  team 


A  SLIDE  DOWN  HILL.  223 

and  wagon  to  the  brink  of  the  hill,  and  following  my  direc- 
tions he  brought  out  some  extra  chains  with  which  we 
locked  both  wheels  on  each  side,  and  then  rough-locked 
them.  We'  then  started  the  wagon  down  the  hill.  The 
wheel-horses — or  rather  the  wheel-mules — were  good  on  the 
hold-back,  and  we  got  along  finely  until  we  nearly  reached 
the  bottom,  when  the  wagon  crowded  the  mules  so  hard  that 
they  started  on  a  run  and  galloped  down  into  the  valley  and 
to  the  place  where  General  Carr  had  located  his  camp. 
Three  other  wagons  immediately  followed  in  the  same  way, 
and  in  half  an  hour  every  wagon  was  in  camp,  without  the 
least  accident  having  occurred.  It  was  indeed  an  exciting 
sight  to  see  the  six-mule  teams  come  straight  down  the 
mountain  and  finally  break  into  a  full  run.  At  times  it 
looked  as  if  the  wagons  would  turn  a  somersault  and  land 
on  the  mules. 

This  proved  to  be  a  lucky  march  for  us  as  far  as  gaining 
on  Penrose  was  concerned,  for  the  route  he  had  taken  on  the 
west  side  of  the  stream  turned  out  to  be  a  bad  one,  and  we 
went  with  our  immense  wagon  train  as  far  in  one  day  as 
Penrose  had  in  seven.  His  command  had  marched  on  to  a 
plateau  or  high  table-land  so  steep,  that  not  even  a  pack 
mule  could  descend  it,  and  he  was  obliged  to  retrace  his  steps 
•a  long  ways,  thus  losing  three  days  time  as  we  afterwards 
learned. 

While  in  this  camp  we  had  a  lively  turkey  hunt.  The 
trees  along  the  banks  of  the  stream  were  literally  alive  with 
wild  turkeys,  and  after  unsaddling  the  horses  between  two 
and  three  hundred  soldiers  surrounded  a  grove  of  timber 
and  had  a  grand  turkey  round-up,  killing  four  or  five  hun- 
dred of  the  birds,  with  guns,  clubs  and  stones.  Of 
course,  we  had  turkey  in  every  style  after  this  hunt — roast 
turkey,  boiled  turkey,  fried  turkey,  "turkey  on  toast,"  and 
80  on ;  and  we  appropriately  called  this  place  Camp  Turkey. 

From  this  point  on,  for  several  days,  we  had  no  trouble  in 
following  Penrose's  trail,  which  led  us  in  a  southeasterly 


224:  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

direction  towards  tlie  Canadian  River.  No  Indians  were 
seen,  nor  any  signs  of  them  found.  One  day,  while  riding 
in  advance  of  the  command,  down  San  Francisco  Creek,  I 
heard  some  one  calling  my  name  from  a  little  bunch  of  wil- 
low brush  on  the  opposite  "bank,  and,  upon  looking  closely 
at  the  spot,  I  saw  a  negro. 

"Sakes  alive!  Massa  Bill,  am  dat  you? "  asked  the  man,, 
whom  I  recognized  as  one  of  the  colored  soldiers  of  the 
Tenth  Cavalry.  I  next  heard  him  say  to  some  one  in  the 
brush :  "Come  out  o'  heah.  Bar's  Massa  Buffalo  Bill." 
Then  he  sang  out,  "  Massa  Bill,  is  you  got  any  hawd  tack  ? " 

"  Nary  a  hard  tack ;  but  the  wagons  will  be  along  pres- 
ently, and  then  you  can  get  all  you  want,"  said  I. 

"  Dat's  de  best  news  Pse  heerd  f oah  sixteen  long  days,, 
Massa  Bill,"  said  he. 

"  Where's  your  command  ?  "Where's  General  Penrose?  " 
I  asked. 

"I  dunno,"  said  the  darkey  ;  "  we  got  lost,  and  we's  been 
a  starvin'  eber  since." 

By  this  time  two  other  negroes  had  emerged  from  their 
place  of  concealment.  They  had  deserted  Penrose's  com- 
mand— which  was  out  of  rations  and  nearly  in  a  starving 
condition — and  were  trying  to  make  their  way  back  to  Fort 
Lyon.  General  Carr  concluded,  from  what  they  could  tell 
him,  that  General  Penrose  was  somewhere  on  Polladora 
Creek;  but  we  could  not  learn  anything  definite  from  the 
starved  u  mokes,"  for  they  knew  not  where  they  were  them- 
selves. 

Having  learned  that  General  Penrose's  troops  were  in 
such  bad  shape,  General  Carr  ordered  Major  Brown  to  start 
out  the  next  morning  with  two  companies  of  cavalry  and 
fifty  pack-mules  loaded  with  provisions,  and  to  make  all 
possible  speed  to  reach  and  relieve  the  suffering  soldiers. 
I  accompanied  this  detachment,  and  on  the  third  day  out 
we  found  the  half-famished  soldiers  camped  on  the  Polladora. 
The  camp  presented  a  pitiful  sight,  indeed.  For  over  two 


ARRIVAL  AT  PENROSE'S  CAMP. 


225 


weeks  the  men  had  had  only  quarter  rations,  and  were  now 
nearly  starved  to  death.  Over  two  hundred  horses  ami 
mules  were  lying  dead,  having  died  from  fatigue  and  starva- 
tion. General  Penrose,  having  feared  that  General  Carr 
would  not* find  him,  had  sent  back  a  company  of  the  Seventh. 
Cavalry  to  Fort  Lyon  for  supplies ;  but  no  word  as  yet  had 


WELCOME   VISITOK. 


been  heard  from  them.  The  rations  which  Major  Brown 
brought  to  the  command  came  none  too  soon,  and  were  the 
means  of  saving  many  a  life. 

About  the  first  man  I  saw  after  reaching  the  camp  wa& 
my  old,  true  and  tried  friend,  Wild  Bill.  That  night  we 
had  a  jolly  reunion  around  the  camp-fires. 

General  Carr,  upon  arriving  with  his  force,  took  command 


226  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

of  all  the  troops,  he  being  the  senior  officer  and  ranking 
General  Penrose.  After  selecting  a  good  camp,  he  unloaded 
the  wagons  and  sent  them  back  to  Fort  Lyon  for  fresh  sup- 
plies. He  then  picked  out  five  hundred  of  the  best  men  and 
horses,  and,  taking  his  pack-train  with  him,  he  started  south 
for  the  Canadian  River,  distant  about  forty  miles,  leaving 
the  rest  of  the  troops  at  the  supply  camp. 

I  was  ordered  to  accompany  this  expedition.  We  struck 
the  south  fork  of  the  Canadian  River,  or  Rio  Colorado,  at 
.a  point  a  few  miles  above  the  old  adobe  walls,  which  at  one 
time  had  composed  a  fort,  and  was  the  place  where  Kit  Car- 
son once  had  a  big  Indian  fight.  We  were  now  within 
twelve  miles  of  a  new  supply  depot,  called  Camp  Evans, 
which  had  been  established  for  the  Third  Cavalry  and 
Evans's  Expedition  from  New  Mexico.  The  scouts  who 
liad  brought  in  this  information  also  reported  that  they 
expected  the  arrival  at  Camp  Evans  of  a  bull-train  from 
New  Mexico  with  a  large  quantity  of  beer  for  tlie  soldiers. 
This  news  was  "pie"  for  Wild  Bill  and  myself,  and  we 
determined  to  lie  low  for  that  beer  outfit.  That  very  even- 
ing it  came  along,  and  the  beer  that  was  destined  for  the 
soldiers  at  Camp  Evans  never  reached  its  destination.  It 
'went  straight  down  the  thirsty  throats  of  General  Carr's 
command.  It  appears  that  the  Mexicans  living  near  Fort 
Union  had  manufactured  the  beer,  and  were  taking  it 
through  to  Camp  Evans  to  sell  to  the  troops,  but  it  struck  a 
lively  market  without  going  so  far.  It  was  sold  to  our  boys 
in  pint  cups,  and  as  the  weather  was  very  cold  we  warmed  the 
beer  by  putting  the  ends  of  our  picket-pins  heated  red-hot 
into  the  cups.  The  result  was  one  of  the  biggest  beer  jolli- 
fications I  ever  had  the  misfortune  to  attend. 

One  evening  General  Carr  summoned  me  to  his  tent,  and 
said  he  wished  to  send  some  scouts  with  dispatches  to  Camp 
Supply,  which  were  to  be  forwarded  from  there  to  Sheridan. 
He  ordered  me  to  call  the  scouts  together  at  once  at  his 
headquarters,  and  select  the  men  who  were  to  go.  I  asked 


TROUBLE  AMONG  THE  SCOUTS.  227 

him  if  I  should  not  go  myself,  but  he  replied  that  he  wished 
me  to  remain  with  the  command,  as  he  could  not  spare  me. 
The  distance  to  Camp  Supply  was  about  two  hundred  miles, 
and  owing  to  the  very  cold  weather  it  was  anything  but  a 
pleasant  trip.  Consequently  none  of  the  scouts  were  anxious 
to  undertake  it.  It  was  finally  settled,  however,  that  Wild 
Bill,  a  half-breed  called  Little  Geary,  and  three  other  scouts 
should  carry  the  dispatches,  and  they  accordingly  took  their 
departure  next  day,  with  instructions  to  return  to  the  com- 
mand as  soon  as  possible. 

For  several  days  we  scouted  along  the  Canadian  River, 
but  found  no  signs  of  Indians.  General  Carr  then  went 
back  to  his  camp,  and  soon  afterwards  our  wagon  train  came 
in  from  Fort  Lyon  with  a  fresh  load  of  provisions.  Our 
animals  being  in  poor  condition,  we  remained  in  different 
camps  along  San  Francisco  Creek  and  the  north  fork  of  the 
Canadian,  until  Wild  Bill  and  his  scouts  returned  from 
Camp  Supply. 

Among  the  scouts  of  Penrose's  command  were  fifteen 
Mexicans,  and  between  them  and  the  American  scouts  there 
had  existed  a  feud  ;  when  General  Carr  took  command  of 
the  expedition — uniting  it  with  his  own — and  I  was  made 
chief  of  all  the  scouts,  this  feud  grew  more  intense,  and  the 
Mexicans  often  threatened  to  clean  us  out ;  but  they  post- 
poned the  undertaking  from  time  to  time,  until  one  day, 
while  we  were  all  at  the  sutler's  store,  the  long-expected 
fight  took  place,  and  resulted  in  the  Mexicans  getting 
severely  beaten. 

General  Carr,  upon  hearing  of  the  row,  sent  for  Wild  Bill 
and  myself,  he  having  concluded,  from  the  various  statements 
which  had  been  made  to  him,  that  we  were  the  instiga- 
tors of  the  affair.  But  after  listening  to  what  we  had  to 
say,  he  thought  that  the  Mexicans  were  as  much  to  blame  as 
we  were. 

It  is  not  to  be  denied  that  Wild  Bill  and  myself  had  been 
partaking  too  freely  of  "tanglefoot"  that  evening;  and 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


General  Carr  said  to  me  :  "  Cody,  there  are  plenty  of  ante- 
lopes in  the  country,  and  you  can  do  some  hunting  for  the 
camp  while  we  stay  here." 

"  All  right,  General,  I'll  do  it." 

After  that  I  put  in  my  time  hunting,  and  with  splendid 
success,  killing  from  fifteen  to  twenty  antelopes  a  day,  which 
kept  the  men  well  supplied  with  fresh  meat. 

At  length,  our  horses  and  mules  having  become  suf- 
ficiently recruited  to  travel,  we  returned  to  Fort  Lyon, 
arriving  there  in  March,  1869,  where  the  command  was  to 
rest  and  recruit  for  thirty  days,  before  proceeding  to  the 
Department  of  the  Platte,  whither  it  had  been  ordered. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

AN   EXCITING   CHASE. 

ENERAL  CARR,  at  my  request,  kindly  granted  me  one 
month's  leave  of  absence  to  visit  my  family  in  St.  Louis, 
and  ordered  Captain  Hays,  our  quartermaster,  to  let  me  ride 
my  mule  and  horse  to  Sheridan,  distant  140  miles,  where  I 
was  to  take  the  cars.  I  was  instructed  to  leave  the  animals 
in  the  quartermaster's  corral  at  Fort  Wallace  until  I  should 
come  back,  but  instead  of  doing  this  I  put  them  both  in  the 
care  of  my  old  friend  Perry,  the  hotel-keeper  at  Sheridan. 
After  a  twenty  days  absence  in  St.  Louis,  pleasantly  spent 
with  my  family,  I  returned  to  Sheridan,  and  there  learned 
that  my  mule  and  horse  had  been  seized  by  the  government. 

It  seems  that  the  quartermaster's  agent  at  Sheridan  had 
reported  to  General  Bankhead,  commanding  Fort  Wallace, 
and  to  Captain  Laufer,  the  quartermaster,  that  I  had  left 
the  country  and  had  sold  a  government  horse  and  mule  to  Mr. 
Perry,  and  of  course  Captain  Laufer  took  possession  of  the 
animals  and  threatened  to  have  Perry  arrested  for  buying 
government  property.  Perry  explained  to  him  the  facts  in 
the  case  and  said  that  I  would  return  in  a  few  days  ;  but  the 
captain  would  pay  no  attention  to  his  statements. 

I  immediately  went  over  to  the  office  of  the  quartermaster's 
agent,  and  had  Perry  point  him  out  to  me.  I  at  once  laid 
hold  of  him,  and  in  a  short  time  had  treated  him  to  just 
such  a  thrashing  as  his  contemptible  lie  deserved. 

229 


230  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

He  then  mounted  a  horse,  rode  to  Fort  Wallace,  and  re- 
ported me  to  General  Bankhead  and  Captain  Laufer,  and 
obtained  a  guard  to  return  with  and  protect  him. 

The  next  morning  I  secured  a  horse  from  Perry,  and  pro- 
ceeding to  Fort  Wallace  demanded  my  horse  and  mule 
from  General  Bankhead,  on  the  ground  that  they  were  quar- 
termaster Hays'  property  and  belonged  to  General  Carr's 
command,  and  that  1  had  obtained  permission  to  ride  them 
to  Sheridan  and  back.  General  Bankhead,  in  a  gruff  man- 
ner ordered  me  out  of  his  office  and  off  the  reservation,  say- 
ing that  if  I  didn't  take  a  hurried  departure  he  would  have 
me  forcibly  put  out.  I  told  him  to  do  it  and  be  hanged  ;  I 
might  have  used  a  stronger  expression,  and  upon  second 
thought,  I  believe  I  did.  I  next  interviewed  Captain  Laufer 
and  demanded  of  him  also  the  horse  and  mule,  as  I  was  re- 
sponsible for  them  to  Quartermaster  Hays.  Captain  Laufer 
intimated  that  I  was  a  liar  and  that  I  had  disposed  of  the 
animals.  Hot  words  ensued  between  us,  and  he  too  ordered 
me  to  leave  the  post.  I  replied  that  General  Bankhead  had 
commanded  me  to  do  the  same  thing,  but  that  I  had  not  yet 
gone ;  and  that  I  did  not  propose  to  obey  any  orders  of  an 
inferior  officer. 

Seeing  that  it  was  of  no  use  to  make  any  further  effort  to 
get  possession  of  the  animals  I  rode  back  to  Sheridan,  and 
just  as  I  reached  there  I  met  the  quartermaster's  agent  com- 
ing out  from  supper,  with  his  head  tied  up.  It  occurred  to 
me  that  he  had  not  received  more  than  one  half  the  punish- 
ment justly  due  him,  and  that  now  would  be  a  good  time  to 
give  him  the  balance — so  I  carried  the  idea  into  immediate 
execution.  After  finishing  the  job  in  good  style,  I  informed 
him  that  he  could  not  stay  in  that  town  while  I  remained 
there,  and  convinced  him  that  Sheridan  was  not  large  enough 
to  hold  us  both  at  the  same  time  ;  he  accordingly  left  the 
place  and  again  went  to  Fort  Wallace,  this  time  reporting 
to  General  Bankhead  that  I  had  driven  him  away,  and  had 
threatened  to  kill  him. 


IN  THE  GUARD  HOUSE.  231 

That  night  while  sleeping  at  the  Perry  House,  I  was 
awakened  by  a  tap  on  the  shoulder  and  upon  looking  up  I  was 
considerably  surprised  to  see  the  room  filled  with  armed  ne- 
groes who  had  their  guns  all  pointed  at  me.  The  first  words 
I  heard  came  from  the  sergeant,  who  said  : 

"Now  look  a-heah,  Massa  Bill,  ef  you  makes  a  move  we'll 
blow  you  off  de  farm,  shuah  !  "  Just  then  Captain  Ezekiel 
entered  and  ordered  the  soldiers  to  stand  back. 

"  Captain,  what  does  this  mean  ? "  I  asked. 

"  I  am  sorry,  Bill,  but  I  have  been  ordered  by  General 
Bankhead  to  arrest  you  and  bring  you  to  Fort  Wallace,"  said 
he. 

"  That's  all  right,"  said  I,  "  but  you  could  have  made  the 
arrest  alone,  without  having  brought  the  whole  Thirty-eighth 
Infantry  with  you." 

"  I  know  that,  Bill,"  replied  the  Captain,  "  but  as  you've 
not  been  in  very  good  humor  for  the  last  day  or  two,  I  didn't 
know  how  you  would  act." 

I  hastily  dressed,  and  accompanied  Captain  Ezekiel  to 
Fort  Wallace,  arriving  there  at  two  o'clock  in  the  morning. 

"Bill,  I  am  really  sorry,"  said  Captain  Ezekiel,  as  we 
alighted,  "  but  I  have  orders  to  place  you  in  the  guard- 
house, and  I  must  perform  my  duty." 

"  Very  well,  Captain  ;  I  don't  blame  you  a  bit,"  said  I ; 
and  into  the  guard-house  I  went  as  a  prisoner  for  the  first 
and  only  time  in  my  life.  The  sergeant  of  the — guard  who- 
was  an  old  friend  of  mine,  belonging  to  Captain  Graham's 
company,  which  was  stationed  there  at  the  time — did  not  put 
me  into  a  cell,  but  kindly  allowed  me  to  stay  in  his  room 
and  occupy  his  bed,  and  in  a  few  minutes  I  was  snoring- 
away  as  if  nothing  unusual  had  occurred. 

Shortly  after  reveille  Captain  Graham  called  to  see  me. 
He  thought  it  was  a  shame  for  me  to  be  in  the  guard-house, 
and  said  that  he  would  interview  General  Bankhead  in  my 
behalf  as  soon  as  he  got  up.  The  Captain  had  a  nice  break- 
fast prepared  for  me,  and  then  departed.  At  guard-mount 


232  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

I  was  not  sent  for,  contrary  to  my  expectations,  and  there- 
upon I  had  word  conveyed  to  Captain  Graham,  who  was 
officer  of  the  day,  that  I  wanted  to  see  General  Bankhead. 
The  Captain  informed  me  that  the  General  absolutely  re- 
fused to  hold  any  conversation  whatever  with  me. 

At  this  time  there  was  no  telegraph  line  between  Fort 
Wallace  and  Fort  Lyon,  and  therefore  it  was  impossible  for 
me  to  telegraph  to  General  Carr,  and  I  determined  to  send  a 
-dispatch  direct  to  General  Sheridan.  I  accordingly  wrote  out 
.a  long  telegram  informing  him  of  my  difficulty,  and  had  it 
taken  to  the  telegraph  office  for  transmission  ;  but  the  ope- 
rator, instead  of  sending  it  at  once  as  he  should  have  done, 
.showed,  it  to  General  Bankhead,  who  tore  it  up,  and 
instructed  the  operator  not  to  pay  any  attention  to  what  I 
might  say,  as  he  was  running  that  post.  Thinking  it  very 
strange  that  I  received  no  answer  during  the  day  I  went  to 
the  telegraph  office,  accompanied  by  a  guard,  and  learned 
from  the  operator  what  he  had  done. 

"  See  here,  my  young  friend,"  said  I,  "  this  is  a  public 
telegraph  line,  and  I  want  my  telegram  sent,  or  there'll  be 
trouble." 

1  re-wrote  my  dispatch  and  handed  it  to  him,  accompanied 
with  the  money  to  pay  for  the  transmission,  saying,  as  I  did 
€O :  "  Young  man,  I  wish  that  telegram  sent  direct  to  Chi- 
cago. You  know  it  is  your  duty  to  send  it,  and  it  must  go." 

He  knew  very  well  that  he  was  compelled  to  transmit  the 
message,  but  before  doing  so  he  called  on  General  Bank- 
head  and  informed  him  of  what  I  had  said,  and  told  him 
that  he  would  certainly  have  to  send  it,  for  if  he  didn't  he 
might  lose  his  position.  The  General,  seeing  that  the  tele- 
gram would  have  to  go,  summoned  me  to  his  headquarters, 
and  the  first  thing  he  said,  after  I  got  into  his  presence 
was: 

"If  I  let  you  go,  sir,  will  you  leave  the  post  at  once  and 
not  bother  my  agent  at  Sheridan  again  ?  " 

"  No,  sir ; "  I  replied,  "  I'll  do  nothing  of  the  kind.      I'll 


I  RETURN  TO  FORT  LYON.  233 

remain  in  the  guard-house  until  I  receive  an  answer  from 
General  Sheridan." 

"  If  I  give  you  the  horse  and  mule  will  you  proceed  at 
once  to  Fort  Lyon  ?  " 

"  No,  sir  ;  I  have  some  bills  to  settle  at  Sheridan  and  some 
other  business  to  transact,"  ivplied  I. 

"  Well,  sir ;  will  you  at  least  agree  not  to  interfere  any 
further  with  the  quartermaster's  agent  at  Sheridan  ? " 

"I  shall  not  bother  him  any  mure,  sir,  as  I  have  had  all  I 
want  from  him,"  was  my  answer. 

General  Bankhead  thereupon  sent  for  Captain  Laufer  and 
ordered  him  to  turn  the  horse  and  mule  over  to  me.  In  a 
few  minutes  more  I  was  on  my  way  to  Sheridan,  and  after 
settling  my  business  there,  I  proceeded  to  Fort  Lyon,  arriv- 
ing two  days  afterwards.  I  related  my  adventures  to  Gen- 
eral Carr,  Major  Brown,  and  other  officers,  who  were  greatly 
amused  thereby. 

"  I'm  glad  you've  come,  Bill,"  said  General  Carr,  "as  I 
have  been  wanting  you  for  the  last  two  weeks.  While  we 
have  been  at  this  post  several  valuable  animals,  as  well  as 
a  large  number  of  government  horses  and  mules  have  been 
stolen,  and  we  think  that  the  thieves  are  still  in  the  vicinity 
of  the  fort,  but  as  yet  we  have  been  unable  to  discover  their 
rendezvous.  I  have  had  a  party  out  for  the  last  few  days  in 
the  neighborhood  of  old  Fort  Lyon,  and  they  have  found 
fresh  tracks  down  there  and  seern  to  think  that  the  stock  is 
concealed  somewhere  in  the  timber,  along  the  Arkansas 
river.  Bill  Green,  one  of  the  scouts  who  has  just  come  up 
from  there,  can  perhaps  tell  you  something  more  about 
the  matter." 

Green,  who  had  been  summoned,  said  that  he  had  dis- 
covered fresh  trails  before  striking  the  heavy  timber  oppo- 
site old  Fort  Lyon,  but  that  in  the  tall  grass  he  could  not 
follow  them.  He  had  marked  the  place  where  he  had  last 
seen  fresh  mule  tracks,  so  that  he  could  find  it  again. 

"  Now,  Cody,  you're  just  the  person  we  want,"  said  the 
General. 
U 


234:  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

"  Yery  well,  I'll  get  a  fresh  mount,  and  to-morrow  I'll  go 
down  and  see  what  I  can  discover,"  said  I. 

"  You  had  better  take  two  men  besides  Green,  and  a  pack 
mule  with  eight  or  ten  days'  rations,"  suggested  the  General,. 
"  so  .that  if  you  find  the  trail  you  can  follow  it  up,  as  I  am 
very  anxious  to  get  back  this  stolen  property.  The  scoun- 
drels have  taken  one  of  my  private  horses  and  also  Lieu- 
tenant Forbush's  favorite  little  black  race  mule." 

Next  morning  I  started  out  after  the  horse-thieves,  being 
accompanied  by  Green,  Jack  Farley,  and  another  scout* 
The  mule  track,  marked  by  Green,  was  easily  found,  and 
with  very  little  difficulty  I  followed  it  for  about  two  miles 
into  the  timber  and  came  upon  a  place  where,  as  I  could 
plainly  see  from  numerous  signs,  quite  a  number  of  head 
of  stock  had  been  tied  among  the  trees  and  kept  for  several 
days.  This  was  evidently  the  spot  where  the  thieves  had  been 
hiding  their  stolen  stock  until  they  had  accumulated  quite 
a  herd.  From  this  point  it  was  difficult  to  trail  them,  as 
they  had  taken  the  stolen  animals  out  of  the  timber  one 
by  one  and  in  different  directions,  thus  showing  that  they 
were  experts  at  the  business  and  experienced  frontiersmen, 
for  no  Indian  could  have  exhibited  more  cunning  in  cover- 
ing up  a  trail  than  did  they. 

I  abandoned  the  idea  of  following  their  trail  in  this  imme- 
diate locality,  so  calling  my  men  together,  I  told  them  that 
we  would  ride  out  for  about  five  miles  and  make  a  complete 
circuit  about  the  place,  and  in  this  way  we  would  certainly 
find  the  trail  on  which  they  had  moved  out.  While  making 
the  circuit  we  discovered  the  tracks  of  twelve  animals — four 
mules  and  eight  horses — in  the  edge  of  some  sand-hills,  and 
from  thjs  point  we  had  no  trouble  in  trailing  them  down  the 
Arkansas  river,  which  they  had  crossed  at  Sand  Creek,  and 
then  had  gone  up  the  latter  stream,  in  the  direction  of  Den- 
ver, to  winch  place  they  were  undoubtedly  bound.  When 
nearing  Denver  their  trail  became  so  obscure  that  we  at  last 
lost  it ;  but  by  inquiring  of  the  settlers  along  the  road  which 
they  had  taken,  we  occasionally  heard  of  them. 


CAPTURE  OF  THE  HORSE  THIEVES.  235 

When  within  four  miles  of  Denver — this  was  on  a  Thurs- 
day— we  learned  that  the  horse-thieves  had  passed  there  two 
days  before.  I  came  to  the  conclusion  they  would  attempt 
to  dispose  of  the  animals  in  Denver,  and  being  aware  that 
Saturday  was  the  great  auction  day  there,  I  thought  it  best 
to  remain  where  we  were  at  a  hotel,  and  not  go  into  the  city 
until  that  day.  It  certainly  would  not  have  been  advisable 
for  me  to  have  gone  into  Denver  meantime — because  I  was 
well-known  there,  and  if  the  thieves  had  learned  of  my 
presence  in  the  city  they  would  at  once  have  suspected  my 
business.  • 

Early  Saturday  morning,  we  rode  into  town  and  stabled 
our  horses  at  the  Elephant  Corral.  I  secured  a  room  from 
Ed.  Chase,  overlooking  the  corral,  and  then  took  up  my  post 
of  observation.  I  did  not  have  long  to  wait,  for  a  man, 
whom  I  readily  recognized  as  one  of  our  old  packers,  rode 
into  the  corral  mounted  upon  Lieutenant  Forbush's  racing 
mule,  and  leading  another  government  mule,  which  I  also 
identified.  It  had  been  recently  branded,  and  over  the 
"  U.  S."  was  a  plain  "  D.  B."  I  waited  for  the  man's  com- 
panion to  put  in  an  appearance,  but  he  did  not  come,  and 
my  conclusion  was  that  lie  was  secreted  outside  of  the  city 
with  the  rest  of  the  animals. 

Presently  the  black  mule  belonging  to  Forbush  was  put 
up  at  auction.  Now,  thought  I,  is  the  time  to  do  my  work. 
So,  walking  through  the  crowd,  who  were  bidding  for 
the  mule,  I  approached  the  man  who  had  offered  him  for 
sale.  He  recognized  me  and  endeavored  to  escape,  but  I 
seized  him  by  the  shoulder,  saying :  "  I  guess,  my  friend, 
that  you'll  have. to  go  with  me.  If  you  make  any  resist- 
ance, I'll  shoot  you  on  the  spot."  He  was  armed  with  a 
pair  of  pistols,  which  I  took  away  from  him.  Then  inform- 
ing the  auctioneer  that  I  was  a  United  States  detective,  and 
showing  him — as  well  as  an  inquisitive  officer — my  commis- 
sion as  such,  I  told  him  to  stop  the  sale,  as  the  mule  was 
stolen  property,  and  that  I  had  arrested  the  thief,  wkose 
name  was  "Williams. 


236  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

Farley  and  Green,  who  were  near  at  hand,  now  came  for- 
ward, and  together  we  took  the  prisoner  and  the  mules 
three  miles  down  the  Platte  River;  there,  in  a  thick 
bunch  of  timber,  we  all  dismounted  and  made  preparations 
to  hang  Williams  from  a  limb,  if  he  did  not  tell  us  where 
his  partner  was.  At  first  he  denied  knowing  anything  about 
any  partner,  or  any  other  stock  ;  but  when  he  saw  that  we 
were  in  earnest,  and  would  hang  him  at  the  end  of  the  given 
time — five  minutes — unless  he  "  squealed,"  he  told  us  that 
his  "pal"  was  at  an  unoccupied  house  three  miles  further 
down  the  river. 

"We  immediately  proceeded  to  the  spot  indicated,  and  as 
we  came  within  sight  of  the  house  we  saw  our  stock  grazing 
near  by.  Just  as  we  rode  up  to  the  door,  another  one  of  our 
old  packers,  whom  I  recognized  as  Bill  Bevins,  stepped  to 
the  front,  and  I  covered  him  instantly  with  my  rifle  before 
he  could  draw  his  revolver.  I  ordered  him  to  throw  up  his 
hands,  and  he  obeyed  the  command.  Green  then  disarmed 
him  and  brought  him  out.  We  looked  through  the  house  and 
found  their  saddles,  pack-saddles,  blankets,  overcoats,  lariats 
and  two  Henry  rifles,  which  we  took  possession  of.  The 
horses  and  mules  we  tied  in  a  bunch,  and  with  the  whole  out- 
fit we  returned  to  Denver,  where  we  lodged  Williams  and 
Bevins  in  jail,  in  charge  of  my  friend,  Sheriff  Edward  Cook. 
The  next  day  we  took  them  out,  and,  tying  each  one  on  a 
mule,  we  struck  out  on  our  return  trip  to  Fort  Lyon. 

At  the  hotel  outside  the  city,  where  we  had  stopped  on 
Thursday  and  Friday,  we  were  joined  by  our  man  with  the 
pack-mule.  That  night  we  camped  on  Cherry  Creek,  seven- 
teen miles  from  Denver.  The  weather — it  being  in  April- 
was  cold  and  stormy,  but  we  found  a  warm  and  cosy  camp- 
ing place  in  a  bend  of  the  creek.  We  made  our  beds  in  a 
row,  with  our  feet  towards  the  fire.  The  prisoners  so  far 
had  appeared  very  docile,  and  had  made  no  attempt  to 
escape,  and  therefore  I  did  not  think  it  necessary  to  hobble 
them.  We  made  them  sleep  on  the  inside,  and  it  was  so 


ESCAPE  OF  BEVINS.  237 

arranged  that  some  one  of  us  should  be  on  guard  all  the  time. 

At  about  one  o'clock  in  the  night  it  began  snowing,  while 
I  was  watching.  Shortly  before  three  o'clock,  Jack  Far- 
ley, who  was  then  on  guard,  and  sitting  on  the  foot  of  the 
bed,  with  his  back  to  the  prisoners,  was  kicked  clear  into 
the  fire  by  Williams,  and  the  next  moment  Bevins,  who  had 
got  hold  of  his  shoes— which  I  had  thought  were  out  of  his 
reach — sprang  up  and  jumped  over  the  h're,  and  started  on  a 
ran.  I  sent  a  shot  after  him  as  soon  as  I  awoke  sufficiently 
to  comprehend  what  was  taking  place.  Williams  attempted 
to  follow  him,  and  as  he  did  so,  1  whirled  around  and 
knocked  him  down  with  my  revolver.  Farley  by  this  time 
had  gathered  himself  out  of  the  h're,  and  Green  had  started 
after  Bevins,  firing  at  him  on  the  run  ;  but  the  prisoner 
made  his  escape  into  the  brush.  In  his  flight,  unfortunately 
for  him,  and  luckily  for  us,  he  dropped  one  of  his  shoes. 

Leaving  Williams  in  the  charge  of  Farley  and  "Long 
Doc,"  as  we  called  the  man  with  the  pack-mule,  Green  and 
myself  struck  out  after  Bevins  as  fast  as  possible.  We 
heard  him  breaking  through  the  brush,  but  knowing  that  it 
would  be  useless  to  follow  him  on  foot,  we  went  back  to  the 
camp  and  saddled  up  two  of  the  fastest  horses,  and  at  day- 
light we  struck  out  on  his  trail,  which  was  plainly  visible  in 
the  snow.  He  had  got  an  hour  and  a  half  the  start  of  us. 
His  tracks  led  us  in  the  direction  of  the  mountains  and  the 
South  Platte  River,  arid  as  the  country  through  which  he 
was  passing  was  covered  with  prickly  pears,  we  knew  that 
he  could  not  escape  stepping  on  them  with  his  one  bare 
foot,  and  hence  we  were  likely  to  overtake  him  in  a  short 
time.  We  could  see,  however,  from  the  long  jumps  that  lie 
was  taking,  that  he  was  making  excellent  time,  but  we  fre- 
quently noticed,  after  we  had  gone  some  distance,  that  the 
prickly  pears  and  stones  along  his  route  were  cutting  his 
bare  foot,  as  nearly  every  track  of  it  was  spotted  with  blood. 

We  had  run  our  horses  some  twelve  miles  when  we  saw 
Bevins  crossing  a  ridge  about  two  miles  ahead.  Urging 


238  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

our  horses  up  to  their  utmost  speed,  \ve  reached  the  ridge 
just  as  he  was  descending  the  divide  towards  the  South 
Platte,  which  stream  was  very  deep  and  swift  at  this  point. 
It  became  evident  that  if  he  should  cross  it  ahead  of  us,  he 
would  have  a  good  chance  of  making  his  escape.  So  push- 
ing our  steeds  as  fast  as  possible,  we  rapidly  gained  on  him, 
and  when  within  a  hundred  yards  of  him  I  cried  to  him  to 
halt  or  I  would  shoot.  Knowing  I  was  a  good  shot,  he  stop- 
ped, and,  coolly  sitting  down,  waited  till  we  came  up. 

"  Bevins,  you've  given  us  a  good  run,"  said  I. 

"  Yes,"  said  he,  "  and  if  I  had  had  fifteen  minutes  more  of 
a  start  and  got  across  the  Platte,  I  would  have  laughed  at 
the  idea  of  your  ever  catching  me." 

Bevin's  run  was  the  most  remarkable  feat  of  the  kind  ever 
known,  either  of  a  white  man,  or  an  Indian.  A  man  who 
could  run  bare-footed  in  the  snow  eighteen  miles  through  a 
prickly  pear  patch,  was  certainly  a  "  tough  one,"  and  that's 
the  kind  of  a  person  Bill  Bevins  was.  Upon  looking  at  his 
bleeding  foot  I  really  felt  sorry  for  him.  He  asked  me  for 
my  knife,  and  I  gave  him  my  sharp-pointed  bowie,  with 
which  he  dug  the  prickly  pear  briars  out  of  his  foot.  I  con- 
sidered him  as  "  game  "  a  man  as  I  had  ever  met. 

"  Bevins,  I  have  got  to  take  you  back,"  said  I,  "  but  as  you 
can't  walk  with  that  foot,  you  can  ride  my  horse  and  I'll 
foot  it." 

We  accordingly  started  back  for  our  camp,  with  Bevins 
on  my  horse,  which  was  led  either  by  Green  or  myself,  as 
we  alternately  rode  the  other  horse.  W'e  kept  a  close 
watch  on  Bevins,  for  we  had  ample  proof  that  he  needed 
watching.  His  wounded  foot  must  have  pained  him  terribly 
but  not  a  word  of  complaint  escaped  him.  On  arriving 
at  the  camp  we  found  Williams  bound  as  we  had  left  him 
and  he  seemed  sorry  that  we  had  captured  Bevins. 

After  breakfasting  we  resumed  our  journey,  and  nothing 
worth  of  note  again  occurred  until  we  reached  the  Arkansas 
river,  where  we  found  a  vacant  cabin  and  at  once  took  pos- 


THE  RECAPTURE  OP  BEVINS. 


ESCAPE  OF  WILLIAMS.  241 

session  of  it  for  the  night.  There  was  no  likelihood  of 
Bevins  again  trying  to  escape,  for  his  foot  had  swollen  to  an 
enormous  size,  arid  was  useless.  Believing  that  Williams 
could  not  escape  from  the  cabin,  we  unbound  him.  We  then 
went  to  sleep,  leaving  Long  Doc  on  guard,  the  cabin  being 
comfortably  wanned  and  well  lighted  by  the  fire.  It  was  a 
dark,  stormy  night — so  dark  that  you  could  hardly  see  your 
hand  before  you.  At  about  ten  o'clock,  Williams  asked  Long 
Doc  to  allow  him  to  step  to  the  door  for  a  moment. 

Long  Doc,  who  had  his  revolver  in  his  hand,  did  not  think 
it  necessary  to  wake  us  up,  and  believing  that  he  could  take 
care  of  the  prisoner,  he  granted  his  request.  Williams  there- 
upon walked  to  the  outer  edge  of  the  door,  while  Long  Doc, 
revolver  in  hand,  was  watching  him  from  the  inside.  Sud- 
denly Williams  made  a  spring  to  the  right,  #nd  before  Doc 
could  even  raise  his  revolver,  he  had  dodged  around  the 
house.  Doc  jumped  after  him,  and  fired  just  as  he  turned 
.a  corner,  the  report  bringing  us  all  to  our  feet,  and  in  an  in- 
stant we  knew  what  had  happened.  I  at  once  covered  Bev- 
ins with  my  revolver,  but  as  I  saw  that  he  could  hardly  stir, 
and  was  making  no  demonstration,  I  lowered  the  weapon. 
Just  then  Doc  came  in  swearing  "a  blue  streak,"  and  an- 
nounced that  Williams  had  escaped.  There  was  nothing  for 
us  to  do  except  to  gather  our  horses  close  to  the  cabin  and 
stand  guard  over  them  for  the  rest  of  the  night,  to  prevent 
the  possibility  of  Williams  sneaking  up  and  stealing  one  of 
them.  That  was  the  last  I  ever  saw  or  heard  of  Williams. 

We  finally  got  back  to  Fort  Lyon  with  Buvins,  and  Gen- 
eral Carr,  to  whom  I  immediately  reported,  complimented 
us  highly  on  the  success  of  our  trip,  notwithstanding  we  had 
lost  one  prisoner.  The  next  day  we  took  Bevins  to  Bongs'  ranch 
on  Picket  Wire  Creek,  and  there  turned  him  over  to  the 
civil  authorities,  who  put  him  in  a  log  jail  to  await  his  trial. 
He  never  was  tried,  however,  for  he  soon  made  his  escape,  as 
I  expected  he  would  do.  I  heard  no  more  of  him  until  1872, 
when  I  learned  that  he  was  skirmishing  around  on  Laramie 


242 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


Plains  at  liis  old  tricks.  He  sent  word  by  the  gentleman 
from  whom  I  gained  this  information,  that  if  lie  ever  met 
me  again  lie  would  kill  me  on  sight.  He  finally  was  arrested 
and  convicted  for  robbery,  and  was  confined  in  the  prison  at 
Laramie  City.  Again  he  made  his  escape,  and  soon  after- 
wards he  organized  a  desperate  gang  of  outlaws  who  infested 
the  country  north  of  the  Union  Pacific  railrop'"'.  f>nd  when 


the  stag 
began  to  run 
between  Chey 
e  n  n  e  and 
Deadwood,  in 
the  Black 
Hills,  they  rob- 
bed the  coaches  and  passengers,  frequently  making  large  hauls 
of  plunder.  They  kept  this  up  for  some  time,  till  finally 
most  of  the  gang  were  caught,  tried,  convicted,  and  sent  to 
the  penitentiary  for  a  number  of  years.  Bill  Bevins  and 
nearly  all  of  his  gang  are  now  confined  in  the  Nebraska  state 
prison,  to  which  they  were  transferred,  from  Wyoming. 


ROBBING  A  STAGE  COACH. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

A   MILITARY    EXPEDITION. 

A  DAY  or  two  after  my  return  to  Fort  Lyon,  the  Fifth 
Cavalry  were  ordered  to  the  Department  of  the  PlatteT 
and  took  up  their  line  of  march  for  Fort  McPherson,  Neb- 
raska. We  laid  over  one  day  at  Fort  Wallace,  to  get  sup- 
plies, and  while  there  I  had  occasion  to  pass  General  Bank- 
head's  headquarters.  His  orderly  called  to  me,  and  said  the 
General  wished  to  see  me.  As  I  entered  the  General's  office 
he  extended  his  hand  and  said  :  "  I  Jiope  you  have  no  hard 
feelings  toward  me,  Cody,  for  having  you  arrested  when  you 
were  here.  I  have  just  had  a  talk  with  General  Can*  and 
Quartermaster  Hays,  and  they  informed  me  that  you  had 
their  permission  to  ride  the  horse  and  mule,  and  if  you  had 
stated  this  fact  to  me  there  would  have  been  no  trouble 
about  the  matter  whatever." 

"That  is  all  right,  General,"  said  I;  "I  will  think  no- 
more  of  it.  But  I  don't  believe  that  your  quartermaster's. 
agent  will  ever  again  circulate  false  stories  about  me." 

"No,"  said  the  General ;  "he  has  not  yet  recovered  from 
the  beating  that  you  gave  him." 

From  Fort  Wallace  we  moved  down  to  Sheridan,  where 
the  command  halted  for  us  to  lay  in  a  supply  of  forage 
which  was  stored  there.  I  was  still  messing  with  Major 
Brown,  with  whom  I  went  into  the  village  to  purchase  a 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

supply  of  provisions  for  our  mess;  but  unfortunately  we 
were  in  too  jolly  a  mood  to  fool  away  money  on  "grub." 
We  bought  several  articles,  however,  and  put  them  into  the 
ambulance  and  sent  them  back  to  the  camp  with  our  cook. 
The  Major  and  myself  did  not  return  until  reveille  next 
morning.  Soon  afterwards  the  General  sounded  "boots  and 
saddles,"  and  presently  the  regiment  was  on  its  way  to 
McPherson. 

It  was  very  late  before  we  went  into  camp  that  night,  and 
we  were  tired  and  hungry.  Jnst  as  Major  Brown  was  hav- 
ing his  tent  put  up,  his  cook  came  to  us  and  asked  where 
the  provisions  were  that  we  had  bought  the  day  before. 

"  Why,  did  we  not  give  them  to  you — did  you  not  bring 
them  to  camp  in  the  ambulance?"  asked  Major  Brown. 

"  No,  sir  ;  it  was  only  a  five-gallon  demijohn  of  whiskey, 
a  five-gallon  demijohn  of  brandy,  and  two  cases  of  Old  Tom- 
Cat  gin,"  said  the  cook. 

"The  mischief!"  I  exclaimed;  "didn't  we  spend  any 
money  on  grub  at  all  \  " 

"  No,  sir,"  replied  the  cook. 

"  Well,  that  will  do  for  the  present,"  said  Major  Brown. 

It  seems  that  our  minds  had  evidently  been  running  on  a 
•different  subject  than  provisions  while  we  were  loitering  in 
Sheridan,  and  we  found  ourselves,  with  a  two  hundred  and 
fifty  mile  march  ahead  of  us,  without  anything  more  inviting 
than  ordinary  army  rations. 

At  this  juncture  Captain  Denny  came  up,  and  the  Major 
-apologized  for  not  being  able  to  invite  him  to  take  supper 
with  us  ;  but  we  did  the  next  best  thing,  and  asked  him  to 
take  a  drink.  He  remarked  that  that  was  what  he  was  look- 
ing for,  and  when  he  learned  of  our  being  out  of  commissary 
supplies,  and  that  we  had  bought  nothing  except  whiskey, 
brandy  and  gin,  he  said,  joyously  : 

"  Boys,  as  we  have  an  abundance,  you  can  eat  with  us,  and 
•we  will  drink  with  yon." 

It  was  a  satisfactory  arrangement,  and  from  that  time  for- 


A  PROFITABLE  INVESTMENT.  245 

ward  we  traded  our  liquids  for  their  solids.  When  the  rest 
of  the  officers  heard  of  what  Brown  and  I  had  done,  they 
all  sent  us  invitations  to  dine  with  them  at  any  time.  We 
returned  the  compliment  by  inviting  them  to  drink  with  us 
whenever  they  were  dry.  Although  I  would  not  advise 
anybody  to  follow  our  example,  yet  it  is  a  fact  that  we  got 
more  provisions  for  our  whiskey  than  the  same  money,  which 
we  paid  for  the  liquor,  would  have  bought;  so  after  all 
it  proved  a  very  profitable  investment. 

On  reaching  the  north  fork  of  the  Beaver  and  riding  down 
the  valley  towards  the  stream,  1  suddenly  discovered  a  large 
fresh  Indian  trail.  On  examination  I  found  it  to  be  scat- 
tered all  over  the  valley  on  both  sides  of  the  creek,  as  if  a 
very  large  village  had  recently  passed  down  that  way. 
Judging  from  the  size  of  the  trail,  I  thought  there  could  not 
be  less  than  four  hundred  lodges,  or  between  twenty-five 
hundred  and  three  thousand  warriors,  women  and  children 
in  the  band.  I  galloped  back  to  the  command,  distant  about 
three  miles,  and  reported  the  news  to  General  Carr,  who 
halted  the  regiment,  arid,  after  consulting  a  few  minutes, 
ordered  me  to  select  a  ravine,  or  as  low  ground  as  possible, 
so  that  he -could  keep  the  troops  out  of  sight  until  we  could 
strike  the  creek. 

We  went  into  camp  on  the  Beaver,  and  the  General 
ordered  Lieutenant  Ward  to  take  twelve  men  and  myself 
and  follow  up  the  trail  for  several  miles,  and  find  out  how 
fast  the  Indians  were  traveling.  I  was  soon  convinced,  by 
the  many  camps  they  ha<J  made,  that  they  were  traveling 
slowly,  and  hunting  as  they  journeyed.  We  went  down  the 
Beaver  on  this  scout  about  twelve  miles,  keeping  our  horses 
well  concealed  under  the  banks  of  the  creek,  so  as  not  to 
be  discovered. 

At  this  point,  Lieutenant  Ward  and  myself,  leaving  our 
horses  behind  us,  crawled  to  the  top  of  a  high  knoll,  where 
we  could  have  a  good  view  for  some  miles  distant  down  the 
stream.  We  peeped  over  the  summit  of  the  hill,  and  not 


246  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

over  three  miles  away  we  could  see  a  whole  Indian  village 
in  plain  sight,  and  thousands  of  ponies  grazing  around  on 
the  prairie.  Looking  over  to  our  left  on  the  opposite  side 
of  the  creek,  we  observed  two  or  three  parties  of  Indians 
coming  in,  loaded  down  with  buffalo  meat. 

"  This  is  no  place  for  us,  Lieutenant,"  said  I ;  "I  think 
we  have  important  business  at  the  camp  to  attend  to  as  soon 
as  possible." 

"  I  agree  with  you,"  said  he,  "  and  the  quicker  we  get  there 
the  better  it  will  be  for  us." 

"We  quickly  descended  the  hill  and  joined  the  men  -below. 
Lieutenant  Ward  hurriedly  wrote  a  note  to  General  Carr, 
and  handing  it  to  a  corporal,  ordered  him  to  make  all  pos- 
sible haste  back  to  the  command  and  deliver  the  message. 
The  man  started  off  on  a  gallop,  and  Lieutenant  Ward  said  : 
"We  will  march  slowly  back  until  we  meet  the  troops,  as  I 
think  the  General  will  soon  be  here,  for  he  will  start  imme- 
diately upon  receiving  my  note." 

In  a  few  minutes  we  heard  two  or  three  shots  in  the  direc- 
tion in  which  our  dispatch  courier  had  gone,  and  soon  after 
we  saw  him  come  flying  around  the  bend  of  the  creek,  pur- 
sued by  four  or  five  Indians.  The  Lieutenant,  with  his 
squad  of  soldiers  and  myself,  at  once  charged  upon  them, 
when  they  turned  and  ran  across  the  stream. 

"This  will  not  do,"  said  Lieutenant  Ward,  "the  whole 
Indian  village  will  now  know  that  soldiers  are  near  by. 

"  Lieutenant,  give  me  that  note,  and  I  will  take  it  to  the 
General,"  said  I. 

He  gladly  handed  me  the  dispatch,  and  spurring  my  horse 
I  dashed  up  the  creek.  After  having  ridden  a  short  dis- 
tance, I  observed  another  party  of  Indians  also  going  to  the 
village  with  meat ;  but  instead  of  waiting  for  them  to  fire 
upon  me,  I  gave  them  a- shot  at  long  range.  Seeing  one 
man  firing  at  them  so  boldly,  it  surprised  them,  and  they 
did  not  know  what  to  make  of  it.  While  they  were  thus 
considering,  I  got  between  them  and  our  camp.  By  this 


A  SHARP  FIGHT  WITH  INDIANS.  247 

time  they  had  recovered  from  their  surprise,  and,  cutting 
their  buffalo  meat  loose  from  their  horses,  they  came  after  me 
at  the  top  of  their  speed  ;  but  as  their  steeds  were  tired  out, 
it  did  not  take  me  long  to  leave  them  far  in  the  rear. 

I  reached  the  command  in  less  than  an  hour,  delivered  the 
dispatch  to  General  Carr,  and  informed  him  of  what  I  had 
seen.  He  instantly  had  the  bugler  sound  "  boots  and 
saddles,"  and  all  the  troops — with  the  exception  of  two 
companies,  which  we  left  to  guard  the  train — were  soon  gal- 
loping in  the  direction  of  the  Indian  camp. 

We  had  ridden  about  three  miles  when  we  met  Lieu- 
tenant Ward,  who  was  coming  slowly  towards  us.  He  re- 
ported that  he  had  run  into  a  party  of  Indian  buffalo-hunt- 
ers, and  had  killed  one  of  the  number,  and  had  had  one  of 
his  horses  wounded.  We  immediately  pushed  forward 
and  after  marching  about  five  miles  came  within  sight  of 
hundreds  of  mounted  Indians  advancing  up  the  creek  to 
meet  us.  They  formed  a  complete  line  in  front  of  us. 
General  Carr,  being  desirous  of  striking  their  village,  ordered 
the  troops  to  charge,  break  through  their  line,  and  keep 
straight  on.  This  movement  would,  no  doubt,  have  been 
successfully  accomplished  had  it  not  been  for  the  rattle- 
brained and  dare-devil  French  Lieutenant  Schinosky,  com- 
manding Company  B,  who,  misunderstanding  General  Carr's 
orders,  charged  upon  some  Indians  at  the  left,  while  the  rest 
of  the  command  dashed  through  the  enemy's  line,  and  was 
keeping  straight  on,  when  it  was  observed  that  Schinosky 
and  his  company  were  surrounded  by  four  or  five  hundred 
red-skins.  The  General,  to  save  the  company,  was  obliged 
to  sound  a  halt  and  charge  back  to  the  reecne.  The  com- 
pany, during  this'  short  fight,  had  several  men  and  quite  a 
number  of  horses  killed. 

All  this  took  up  valuable  time,  and  niirht  was  coming  on. 
The  Indians  were  fighting  desperately  to  keep  us  from  reach- 
ing their  village,  which  being  informed  by  couriers  of  what 
was  taking  place,  was  packing  up  and  getting  away.  During 


24:8  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

that  afternoon  it  was  all  we  could  do  to  hold  our  own  in 
fighting  the  mounted  warriors,  who  were  in  our  front  and 
contesting  every  inch  of  the  ground.  The  General  had  left 
word  for  our  wagon, train  to  follow  up  with  itB  escort  of  two- 
companies,  but  as  it  had  not  made  its  appearance  he  enter- 
tained some  fears  that  it  had  been  surrounded,  and  to  prevent 
the  possible  loss  of  the  supply  train  we  had  to  go  back  and 
look  for  it.  About  9  o'clock  that  evening  we  found  it,  and 
went  into  camp  for  the  night. 

Next  morning  we  passed  down  the  creek  and  there  was 
not  an  Indian  to  be  seen.  They  had  all  disappeared  and 
gone  on  with  their  village.  Two  miles  further  on  we  came 
to  where  a  village  had  been  located,  and  here  we  found 
nearly  everything  belonging  or  pertaining  to  an  Indian 
camp,  which  had  been  left  in  the  great  hurry  to  get  away. 
These  articles  were  all  gathered  up  and  burned.  We  then 
puehed  out  on  the  trail  as  fast  as  possible.  It  led  us  to  the 
northeast  towards  the  Republican  ;  but  as  the  Indians  had  a 
night  the  start  of  us  we  entertained  but  little  hope  of  over- 
taking them  that  day.  Upon  reaching  the  Republican  in  the 
afternoon  the  General  called  a  halt,  and  as  the  trail  was  run- 
ning more  to  the  east,  he  concluded  to  send  his  wagon  train 
on  to  Fort  McPherson  by  the  most  direct  route,  while  lie 
would  follow  on  the  trail  of  the  red-skins. 

Next  morning  at  daylight  we  again  pulled  out  and  were 
evidently  gaining  rapidly  on  the  Indians  for  we  could  occa- 
sionally see  them  in  the  distance.  About  11  o'clock  that 
day  while  Major  Babcock  was  ahead  of  the  main  command 
with  his  company,  and  while  we  were  crossing  a  deep  ravine, 
we  were  surprised  by  about  three  hundred  warriors  who  com- 
menced a  lively  fire  upon  us.  Galloping  out  of  the  ravine  on 
to  the  roujrh  prairie  the  men  dismounted  and  returned  the 
fire.  "We  soon  succeeded  in  driving  the  enemy  before  us, 
and  were  so  close  upon  them  at  one  time,  that  they  aban- 
doned and  threw  away  nearly  all  their  lodges  and  camp 
equipages,  and  everything  that  had  any  considerable  weight. 


THE  PAWNEE  SCOUTS. 

They  loft  behind  them  their  played-out  horses,  and  for  miles 
we  could  see  Indian  furniture  strewn  along  in  every  direction. 
The  trail  became  divided,  and  the  Indians  scattered  in  small 
bodies,  all  over  the  prairie.  As  night  was  approaching  and 
our  horses  were  about  giving  out,  a  halt  was  called.  A  com- 
pany was  detailed  to  collect  all  the  Indian  horses  running- 
loose  over  the  country,  and  to  burn  the  other  Indian  property. 

The  command  being  nearly  out  of  rations  I  was  sent  to- 
the  nearest  point,  Old  Fort  Kearney,  about  sixty  miles  dis- 
tant for  supplies. 

Shortly  after  we  reached .  Fort  McPhreson,  which  con- 
tinued to  be  the  headquarters  of  the  Fifth  Cavalry  for  some 
time.  We  remained* there  for  ten  days,  fitting  out  for  a  new 
expedition  to  the  Republican  river  country,  and  were  rein- 
forced by  three  companies  of  the  celebrated  Pawnee  Indian 
scouts,  commanded  by  Major  Frank  North  ;  his  officers  being- 
Captain  Lute  North,  brother  of  the  Major,  Captain  dishing,, 
his  brother-in-law,  Captain  Morse,  and  Lieutenants  Beecherr 
Matthews  and  Kislandberry.  General  Carr  recommended 
at  this  time  to  General  Augur,  who  was  in  command  of  the 
Department,  that  I  be  made  chief  of  scouts  in  the  Depart- 
ment of  the  Platte,  and  informed  me  that  in  this  position  I 
would  receive  higher  wages  than  I  had  been  getting  in  the 
Department  of  the  Missouri.  This  appointment  I  had  not 
asked  for. 

I  made  the  acquaintance  of  Major  Frank  North,*  and  I 
found  him,  and  his  officers,  perfect  gentlemen,  and  we  were 
all  good  friends  from  the  very  start.  The  Pawnee  scouts 
had  made  quite  a  reputation  for  themselves  as  they  had  per- 
formed brave  and  valuable  services,  in  fighting  against  the 
Sioux,  whose  bitter  enemies  they  were;  being  thoroughly 
acquainted  with  the  Republican  and  Beaver  country,  I  was 
glad  that  they  were  to  be  with  the  expedition,  and  they  did 
good  service. 

*  Major  North  is  now  my  partner  in  a  cattle  ranch  in  Nebraska, 


250  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

During  our  stay  at  Fort  McPherson  I  made  the  acquaint- 
ance of  Lieutenant  George  P.  Belden,  known  as  the  "White 
Chief,"  whose  life  was  written  by  Colonel  Brisbin,  U.  S. 
army.  I  found  him  to  be  an  intelligent,  dashing  fellow,  a 
splendid  rider  and  an  excellent  shot.  An  hour  after  our 
introduction  he  challenged  me  for  a  rifle  match,  the  prelimi- 
naries of  which  were  soon  arranged.  We  were  to  shoot  ten 
shots  each  for  fifty  dollars,  at  two  hundred  yards,  off  hand. 
Belden  was  to  use  a  Henry  rifle,  while  I  was  to  shoot  my  old 
4t  Lucretia."  This  match  I  won  and  then  Belden  proposed 
to  shoot  a  one  hundred  yard  match,  as  I  was  shooting  over 
his  distance.  In  this  match  Belden  was  victorious.  We 
were  now  even,  and  we  stopped  right  there. 

While  we  were  at  this  post  General  Augur  and  several  of 
liis  officers,  and  also  Thomas  Duncan,  Brevet  Brigadier  and 
Lieutenant  Colonel  of  the  Fifth  Cavalry,  paid  us  a  visit  for 
the  purpose  of  reviewing  the  command.  The  regiment 
turned  out  in  fine  style  and  showed  themselves  to  be  well 
•drilled  soldiers,  thoroughly  understanding  military  tactics. 
The  Pawnee  scouts  were  also  reviewed  and  it  was  very 
amusing  to  see  them  in  their  full  regulation  uniform.  They 
had  been  furnished  a  regular  cavalry  uniform  and  on  this 
parade  some  of  them  had  their  heavy  overcoats  on,  others 
their  large  black  hats,  with  all  the  brass  accoutrements 
attached ;  some  of  them  were  minus  pantaloons  and  only 
wore  a  breech  clout.  Others  wore  regulation  pantaloons  but 
no  shirts  on  and  were  bareheaded;  others  again  had  the 
seat  of  the  pantaloons  cut  out,  leaving  only  leggins ;  some 
of  them  wore  brass  spurs,  but  had  no  boots  or  moccasins  on. 
They  seemed  to  understand  the  drill  remarkably  well  for 
Indians.  The  commands,  of  course,  were  given  to  them  in 
their  own  language  by  Major  ]S~orth,  who  could  talk  it  as 
well  as  any  full-blooded  Pawnee.  The  Indians  were  well 
mounted  and  felt  proud  and  elated  because  they  had  been 
made  United  States  soldiers.  Major  !North,  has  had  for 
years  complete  power  over  these  Indians  and  can  do  more 


PAWNEES    VERSUS  SIOUX.  251 

with,  them  than  any  man  living.  That  evening  after  the 
parade  was  over  the  officers  and  quite  a  number  of  ladies 
visited  a  grand  Indian  dance  given  by  the  Pawnees,  and  of 
all  the  Indians  I  have  seen,  their  dances  excel  those  of  any 
other  tribe. 

Next  day  the  command  started  ;  when  encamped,  several 
days  after,  on  the  Republican  river  near  the  mouth  of  the 
Beaver,  we  heard  the  whoops  of  Indians,  followed  by  shots 
in  the  vicinity  of  the  mule  herd,  which  had  been  taken  down 
to  water.  One  of  the  herders  came  dashing  into  camp  with 
an  arrow  sticking  into  him.  My  horse  was  close  at  hand, 
and,  mounting  him  bare-back,  I  at  once  dashed  off  after  the 
mule  herd,  which  had  been  stampeded.  I  supposed  certainly 
that  I  would  be  the  first  man  on  the  ground.  I  was  mis- 
taken, however,  for  the  Pawnee  Indian?,  unlike  regular  sol- 
diers, had  not  waited  to  receive  orders  from  their  officers,  but 
had  jumped  on  their  ponies  without  bridles  or  saddles,  and 
placing  ropes  in  their  mouths,  had  dashed  off  in  the  direction 
whence  the  shots  had  come,  and  had  got  there  ahead  of 
me.  It  proved  to  be  a  party  of  about  fifty  Sioux,  who  had 
endeavored  to  stampede  our  mules,  and  it  took  them  by  sur- 
prise to  see  their  inveterate  enemies — the  Pawnees — coming 
at  full  gallop  towards  them.  They  were  not  aware  that  the 
Pawnees  were  with  the  command,  and  as  they  knew  that  it 
would  take  regular  soldiers  sometime  to  turn  out,  they 
thought  they  would  have  ample  opportunity  to  secure  the 
herd  before  the  troops  could  give  chase. 

We  had  a  running  fight  of  fifteen  miles,  and  several  of  the 
enemy  were  killed.  During  this  chase  I  was  mounted  on  an 
excellent  horse,  which  Colonel  Poyal  had  picked  out  for 
me,  and  for  the  first  mile  or  two  I  was  in  advance  of  the 
Pawnees.  Presently  a  Pawnee  shot  by  me  like  an  arrow 
and  I  could  not  help  admiring  the  horse  that  he  was  riding. 
Seeing  that  he  possessed  rare  running  qualities,  I  determined 
if  possible  to  get  possession  of  the  animal  in  some  way.  It 
was  a  large  buckskin  or  yellow  horse,  and  I  took  a  careful 
15 


252  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

view  of  him  so  that  I  would  know  him  when  I  returned  to 
camp. 

After  the  chase  was  over  I  rode  up  to  Major  North  and 
inquired  about  the  buckskin  horse. 

"  Oh  yes,"  said  the  Major,  4k  that  is  one  of  our  favorite 
steeds." 

"  "What  chance  is  there  to  trade  for  him  ? "  I  asked. 

"  It  is  a  government  horse,"  said  he,  "  and  the  Indian  who 
is  riding  him  is  very  much  attached  to  the  animal." 

"  I  have  fallen  in  love  with  the  horse  myself,"  said  I,  "  and 
I  would  like  to  know  if  you  have  any  objections  to  my  trad- 
ing for  him  if  I  can  arrange  it  satisfactorily  with  the  In- 
dian ? " 

He  said :  "  None  whatever,  and  I  will  help  you  to  do  it ; 
you  can  give  the  Indian  another  horse  in  his  place." 

A  few  days  after  this,  I  persuaded  the  Indian,  by  making 
him  several  presents,  to  trade  horses  with  me,  and  in  this  way 
I  became  the  owner  of  the  buckskin  steed,  not  as  my  own 
property,  however,  but  as  a  government  horse  that  I  could 
ride.  I  gave  him  the  name  of  "  Buckskin  Joe  "  and  he  proved 
to  be  a  second  Brigham.  That  horse  I  rode  on  and  off 
during  the  summers  of  1869,  1870,  1871  and  1872,  and  he 
was  the  horse  that  the  Grand  Duke  Alexis  rode  on  his  buffalo 
hunt.  In  the  winter  of  1872,  after  I  had  left  Fort  McPher- 
son,  Buckskin  Joe  was  condemned  and  sold  at  public  sale, 
and  was  bought  by  Dave  Perry,  at  North  Platte,  who  in 
1877  presented  him  to  me,  and  I  still  own  him.  He  is  now 
at  my  ranch  on  the  Dismal  river,  stone  blind,  but  I  shall 
keep  him  until  he  dies. 

The  command  scouted  several  days  up  the  Beaver  and 
Prairie  Dog  rivers,  occasionally  having  running  fights  with 
way  parties  of  Indians,  but  did  not  succeed  in  getting  them 
into  a  general  battle.  At  the  end  of  twenty  days  we  found 
ourselves  back  on  the  Republican. 

Hitherto  the  Pawnees  had  not  taken  much  interest  in  me, 
but  while  at  this  camp  I  gained  their  respect  and  admiration 


BUCKSKIN  JOE.  253 

by  showing  them  how  I  killed  buffaloes.  Although  the 
Pawnees  were  excellent  buffalo  killers,  for  Indians,  I  have 
never  seen  one  of  them  who  could  kill  more  than  four  or 
five  in  one  run.  A  number  of  them  generally  surround  the 
herd  and  then  dash  in  upon  them,  and  in  this  way  each  one 
kills  from  one  to  four  buffaloes.  I  had  gone  out  in  company 
with  Major  North  and  some  of  the  officers,  and  saw  them 
make  a  "  surround.'*  Twenty  of  the  Pawnees  circled  a  herd 
and  succeeded  in  killing  only  thirty -two. 

While  they  were  cutting  up  the  animals  another  herd  ap- 
peared in  sight.  The  Indians  were  preparing  to  surround 
it,  when  I  asked  Major  North  to  keep  them  back  and  let 
me  show  them  what  I  could  do.  He  accordingly  informed 
the  Indians  of  my  wish  and  they  readily  consented  to  let  me 
have  the  opportunity.  I  had  learned  that  Buckskin  Joe  was 
an  excellent  buffalo  horse,  and  felt  confident  that  1  wrould 
astonish  the  natives ;  galloping  in  among  the  buffaloes, 
I  certainly  did  so  by  killing  thirty-six  in  less  than  a  half-mile 
run.  At  nearly  every  shot  I  killed  a  buffalo,  stringing  the 
dead  animals  out  on  the  prairie,  not  over  fifty  feet  apart. 
This  manner  of  killing  was  greatly  admired  by  the  Indians 
who  called  me  a  big  chief,  and  from  that  time  on,  I  stood 
high  in  their  estimation. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

A   DESPERATE    FIGHT. 

ON  leaving  camp,  the  command  took  a  westward  course  up 
the  Republican,  and  Major  North  with  two  companies  of 
his  Pawnees  and  two  or  three  companies  of  cavalry,  under 
the  command  of  Colonel  Royal,  made  a  scout  to  the  north 
of  the  river.  Shortly  after  we  had  gone  into  camp,  on  the 
Black  Tail  Deer  Fork,  we  observed  a  band  of  Indians  com- 
ing over  the  prairie  at  full  gallop,  singing  and  yelling  arid 
waving  their  lances  and  long  poles.  At  first  we  supposed 
them  to  be  Sioux,  and  all  was  excitement  for  a  few  moments. 
"We  noticed,  however,  that  our  Pawnee  Indians  made  no 
hostile  demonstrations  or  preparations  towards  going  out  to 
fight  them,  but  began  swinging  and  yelling  themselves. 
Captain  Lute  North  stepped  up  to  General  Carr  and  said : 

"  General,  those  are  our  men  who  are  coming,  and  they 
have  had  a  fight.  That  is  the  way  they  act  when  they  come 
back  from  a  battle  and  have  taken  any  scalps." 

The  Pawnees  came  into  camp  on  the  run.  Captain  North 
calling  to  one  of  them — a  sergeant — soon  found  out  that  they 
had  run  across  a  party  of  Sionx  who  were  following  a  large 
Indian  trail.  These  Indians  had  evidently  been  in  a  fight, 
for  two  or  three  of  them  had  been  wounded  and  they  were 
conveying  the  injured  persons  on  travels.  The  Pawnees 
had  "jumped"  them  and  had  killed  three  or  four  more  of 
them. 

254 


PREPARING  FOR  A  CHARGE.  255 

Next  morning  the  command,  at  an  early  hour,  started  out 
to  take  up  this  Indian  trail  which  they  followed  for  two  days 
as  rapidly  as  possible ;  it  becoming  evident  from  the  many  camp 
fires  which  we  passed,  that  we  were  gaining  on  the  Indians. 
Wherever  they  had  encamped  we  found  the  print  of  a 
woman's  shoe,  and  we  concluded  that  they  had  with  them 
some  white  captive.  This  made  us  all  the  more  anxious  to 
overtake  them,  and  General  Carr  accordingly  selected  all  his 
best  horses,  wThich  could  stand  a  hard  run,  and  gave  orders 
for  the  wagon  train  to  follow  as  fast  as  possible,  while  he 
pushed  ahead  on  a  forced  inarch.  At  the  same  time  I  was 
ordered  to  pick  out  five  or  six  of  the  best  Pawnees,  and  go 
on  in  advance  of  the  command,  keeping  ten  or  twelve  miles 
ahead  on  the  trail,  so  that  when  we  overtook  the  Indians  we 
could  find  out  the  location  of  their  camp,  and  send  word  to 
the  troops  before  they  came  in  sight,  thus  affording  ample 
time  to  arrange  a  plan  for  the  capture  of  the  village. 

After  having  gone  about  ten  miles  in  advance  of  the  regi- 
ment, we  began  to  move  very  cautiously,  as  we  were  now 
evidently  nearing  the  Indians.  We  looked  carefully  over 
the  summits  of  the  hills  before  exposing  ourselves  to  plain 
view,  and  at  last  we  discovered  the  village,  encamped  in  the 
sand-hills  south  of  the  South  Platte  river  at  Summit  Springs. 
Here  I  left  the  Pawnee  scouts  to  keep  watch,  while  I  went 
back  and  informed  General  Carr  that  the  Indians  were  in 
sight. 

The  General  at  once  ordered  his  men  to  tighten  their 
saddles  and  otherwise  prepare  for  action.  Soon  ail  was  ex- 
citement among  the  officers  and  soldiers,  every  one  being 
anxious  to  charge  the  village.  I  now  changed  my  horse  for 
old  Buckskin  Joe,  who  had  been  led  for  me  thus  far,  and 
was  comparatively  fresh.  Acting  on  my  suggestion,  the 
General  made  a  circuit  to  the  north,  believing  that  if  the 
Indians  had  their  scouts  out,  they  would  naturally  be  watch- 
ing in  the  direction  whence  they  had  come.  When  we  had 
passed  the  Indians  and  were  between  them  and  the  Platte 


256  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

river,  we  turned  to  the  left  and  started  toward  the  village. 

By  this  manceuver  we  had  avoided  discovery  by  the  Sioux 
scouts,  and  we  were  confident  of  giving  them  a  complete 
surprise.  Keeping  the  command  wholly  out  of  sight,  until 
we  were  within  a  mile  of  the  Indians,  the  General  halted  the 
advance  guarol  until  all  closed  up,  and  then  issued  an  order, 
that,  when  he  sounded  the  charge,  the  whole  command  was 
to  rush  into  the  village. 

As  we  halted  on  the  top  of  the  hill  overlooking  the  camp 
of  the  unsuspecting  Indians,  General  Carr  called  out  to  his 
bugler :  "  Sound  the  charge  !  "  The  bugler  for  a  moment 
became  intensely  excited,  and  actually  forgot  the  notes.  The 
General  again  sang  out :  "  Sound  the  charge  ! "  and  yet  the 
bugler  was  unable  to  obey  the  command.  Quartermaster 
Hays — who  had  obtained  permission  to  accompany  the  ex- 
pedition— was  riding  near  the  General,  and  comprehending 
the  dilemma  of  the  man,  rushed  up  to  him,  jerked  the 
bugle  from  his  hands  and  sounded  the  charge  himself  in 
clear  and  distinct  notes.  As  the  troops  rushed  forward,  he 
threw  the  bugle  away,  then  drawing  his  pistols,  was  among 
the  first  men  that  entered  the  village. 

The  Indians  had  just  driven  up  their  horses  and  were  pre- 
paring to  make  a  move  of  the  camp,  when  they  saw  the  sol- 
diers coming  down  upon  them.  A  great  many  of  them 
succeeded  in  jumping  upon  their  ponies,  and,  leaving  every 
thing  behind  them,  advanced  out  of  the  village  and  prepared 
to  meet  the  charge ;  but  upon  second  thought  they  quickly 
concluded  that  it  was  useless  to  try  to  check  us,  and,  those 
who  were  mounted  rapidly  rode  away,  while  the  others  on 
foot  fled  for  safety  to  the  neighboring  hills.  We  went 
through  their  village  shooting  right  and  left  at  everything 
we  saw.  The  Pawnees,  the  regular  soldiers  and  the  officers 
were  all  mixed  up  together,  and  the  Sioux  were  flying  in 
every  direction. 

General  Carr  had  instructed  the  command  that  when  they 
entered  the  village,  they  must  keep  a  sharp  look  out  for 


EESCUE  OF  THE  WHITE  CAPTIVE.  259 

white  women,  as  he  was  confident  the  Indians  had  some  cap- 
tives. The  company  which  had  been  ordered  to  take  possess- 
ion of  the  village  after  its  capture,  soon  found  two  white 
women,  one  of  whom  had  just  been  killed  and  the  other 
wounded.  They  were  both  Swedes,  and  the  survivor  could 
not  talk  English.  A  Swedish  soldier,  however,  was  soon 
found  who  could  talk  with  her.  The  name  of  this  woman 
was  Mrs.  Weichel,  and  her  story  as  told  to  the  soldier  was, 
that  as  soon  as  the  Indians  saw  the  troops  coming  down  upon 
them,  a  squaw — Tall  Bull's  wife — had  killed  Mrs.  Alderdice, 
the  other  captive,  with  a  hatchet,  and  then  wounded  her. 
This  squaw  had  evidently  intended  to  kill  both  women  to 
prevent  them  from  telling  how  cruelly  they  had  been  treated. 
The  attack  lasted  but  a  short  time,  and  the  Indians  were 
driven  several  miles  away.  The  soldiers  then  gathered  in 
the  herd  of  Indian  horses,  which  were  running  at  large  over 
the  country  and  drove  them  back  to  the  camp.  After  taking 
a  survey  of  what  we  had  accomplished,  it  was  found  that  we 
had  killed  about  one  hundred  and  forty  Indians,  and  cap- 
tured one  hundred  and  twenty  squaws  and  papooses,  two 
hundred  lodges,  and  eight  hundred  horses  and  mules.  The 
village  proved  to  be  one  of  the  richest  I  had  ever  seen. 
The  red-skins  had  everything  pertaining  to  an  Indian 
camp,  besides  numerous  articles  belonging  to  the  white 
settlers  whom  they  had  killed  on  the  Saline.  The  Pawnees, 
as  well  as  the  soldiers,  ransacked  the  camp  for  curiosities, 
and  found  enough  to  start  twenty  museums,  besides  a  large 
amount  of  gold  and  silver.  This  money  had  been  stolen 
from  the  Swedish  settlers  whom  they  had  murdered  on  the 
Saline.  General  Carr  ordered  that  all  the  tepees,  the  Indian 
lodges,  buffalo  robes,  all  camp  equipage  and  provisions,  in- 
cluding dried  buffalo  meat,  amounting  to  several  tons,  should 
be  gathered  in  piles  and  burned.  A  grave  was  dug  in 
which  the  dead  Swedish  woman,  Mrs.  Alderdice,  was  buried. 
Captain  Kane,  a  religious  officer,  read  the  burial  service,  as 
we  had  no  chaplain  with  us. 


260  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

While  this  was  going  on,  the  Sioux  warriors  having  recov- 
ered from  their  surprise,  had  come  back  and  a  battle  took 
place  all  around  the  camp.  I  was  on  the  skirmish  line,  and 
I  noticed  an  Indian,  who  was  riding  a  large  bay  horse,  and 
giving  orders  to  his  men  in  his  own  language — which  I  could 
occasionally  understand— telling  them  that  they  had  lost 
everything,  that  they  were  ruined,  and  he  entreated  them  to 
follow  him,  and  fight  until  they  died.  His  horse  was  an  ex- 
traordinary one,  fleet  as  the  wind,  dashing  here  and  there,, 
and  I  determined  to  capture  him  if  possible,  but  I  was  afraid 
to  fire  at  the  Indian  for  fear  of  killing  the  horse. 

I  noticed  that  the  Indian,  as  he  rode  around  the  skirmish 
line,  passed  the  head  of  a  ravine  not  far  distant,  and  it  oc- 
curred to  me  that  if  I  could  dismount  and  creep  to  the 
ravine  I  could,  as  he  passed  there,  easily  drop  him  from  his 
saddle  without  danger  of  hitting  the  horse.  Accordingly  I 
crept  into  and  secreted  myself  in  the  ravine,  reaching  the 
place  unseen  by  the  Indians,  and  I  waited  there  until  Mr* 
Chief  came  riding  by. 

When  he  was  not  more  than  thirty  yards  distant  I  fired., 
and  the  next  moment  he  tumbled  from  his  saddle,  and  the 
horse  kept  on  without  his  rider.     Instead  of  running  toward 
the  Indians,  however,  he  galloped  toward  our  men,  by  one 
of  whom  he  was  caught.     Lieutenant  Mason,who  had  been 
very  conspicuous  in  the  fight  and  who  had  killed  two  or 
three  Indians  himself,  single-handed,  came  galloping  up  to 
the  ravine   and  jumping   from  his  horse,  secured  the  fancy 
war  bonnet  from  the  head  of  the  dead  chief,  together  with 
all  his  other   accoutrements.     We  both  then  rejoined  the 
soldiers,  and  I  at  once  went  in  search  of  the  horse  ;  I  found 
him  in  the  possession  of  Sergeant  McGrath,  who  had  caught 
him.     The  Sergeant  knew  that  I  had  been  trying  to  get  the 
animal  and  having  seen  me  kill  his  rider,  he  handed  him 
over  to  me  at  once. 

Little  did  I  think  at  that  time  that  I  had  captured  a  horse 
which,  for  four  years  afterwards  was  the  fastest  runner  in 


LAMENT  OF  TALL  BULL'S  WIFE. 


261 


the  state  of  Nebraska,  but  such   proved  to  be  the  fact.     I 
jumped  on  his  back  and  rode  him  down   to  the  spot  where 


the  prisoners  were  corraled 
One  of   the  squaws  among 
the  prisoners  suddenly  ) 
began  crying  in  a  pitiful 
and   hysterical  manner   at 
the  sight  of  this  horse,  and 
upon  inquiry  I   found  that 
she    was  Tall  Bull's   wife, 
the  same  squaw    that   had 
killed   one   of   the   white 


THE    KILLING  OF  TALL  BULL. 

women  and  wounded  the  other. 
She  stated  that  this  was  her  husband's  favorite  war-horse, 
and  that  only  a  short  time  ago  she  had  seen  Tall  Bull  riding 
him.  I  gave  her  to  understand  that  her  liege  lord  had  passed 
in  his  mortal  chips  and  that  it  would  be  sometime  before  he 
would  ride  his  favorite  horse  again,  and  I  informed  her  that 
henceforth  I  should  call  the  gallant  steed  "  Tall  Bull,"  in 
honor  of  her  husband. 


262  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

Late  in  the  evening  our  wagon  train  arrived,  and  placing 
the  wounded  woman,  Mrs.  Weichel,  in  the  ambulance — she 
having  been  kindly  attended  to  by  the  surgeons, — and  gath- 
ering up  the  prisoners — the  squaws  and  papooses — and  cap- 
tured stock,  we  started  at  once  for  the  South  Platte  Eiver, 
eight  miles  distant,  and  there  went  into  camp. 

Next  morning  General  Carr  issued  an  order  that  all  the 
money  found  in  the  village  should  be  turned  over  to  the 
adjutant.  About  one  thousand  dollars  was  thus  collected, 
and  the  entire  amount  was  given  to  Mrs.  Weichel.  The 
command  then  proceeded  to  Fort  Sedgwick,  from  which 
point  the  particulars  of  our  fight,  which  took  place  on  Sun- 
day, July  llth,  1869,  were  telegraphed  to  all  parts  of  the 
country. 

We  remained  at  this  post  for  two  weeks,  during  which 
General  Augur,  of  the  Department  of  the  Platte,  paid  us  a 
visit,  and  highly  complimented  the  command  for  the  gallant 
service  it  had  performed.  For  this  fight  at  Summit  Springs 
General  Carr  and  his  command  were  complimented  not  only 
in  General  Orders,  but  received  a  vote  of  thanks  from  the 
Legislatures  of  Nebraska  and  Colorado — as  Tall  Bull  and 
his  Indians  had  long  been  a  terror  to  the  border  settlements 
— and  the  resolutions  of  thanks  were  elegantly  engrossed  and 
sent  to  General  Carr. 

The  wounded  white  woman  was  cared  for  in  the  hospital 
at  this  post,  and  after  her  recovery  she  soon  married  the 
hospital  steward,  her  former  husband  having  been  killed  by 
the  Indians. 

Our  prisoners  were  sent  to  the  Whetstone  Agency,  on  the 
Missouri  Elver,  where  Spotted  Tail  and  the  friendly  Sioux 
were  then  living.  The  captured  horses  and  mules  were  dis- 
tributed among  the  officers,  scouts  and  soldiers.  Among  the 
animals  that  I  thus  obtained  were  my  Tall  Bull  horse, 
and  a  pony  which  I  called  "  Powder  Face,"  and  which  after- 
wards became  quite  celebrated,  as  he  figured  prominently  in 
the  stories  of  Ned  Runtime. 


NED  BUNTLINE.  263 

One  day,  while  we  were  lying  at  Fort  Sedgwick,  General 
Carr  received  a  telegram  from  Fort  McPherson  stating  that 
the  Indians  had  made  a  dash  on  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad, 
and  had  killed  several  section-men  and  run  off  some  stock  near 
O'Fallon's  Station  ;  also  that  an  expedition  was  going  out 
from  Fort  McPherson  to  catch  and  punish  the  red-skins  if 
possible.  The  General  ordered  me  to  accompany  the  expe- 
dition, and  accordingly  that  night  I  proceeded  by  rail  to  Mc- 
Pherson Station,  and  from  thence  rode  on  horseback  to  the 
fort.  Two  companies,  under  command  of  Major  Brown, 
had  been  ordered  out,  and  next  morning,  just  as  we  were 
about  to  start,  Major  Brown  said  to  me : 

"  By  the  way,  Cody,  we  are  going  to  have  quite  an  im- 
portant character  with  us  as  a  guest  on  this  scout.  It's  old 
Ned  Buntline,  the  novelist." 

Just  then  I  noticed  a  gentleman,  who  was  rather  stoutly 
built,  and  who  wore  a  blue  military  coat,  on  the  left  breast 
of  which  were  pinned  about  twenty  gold  medals  and  badges 
of  secret  societies.  He  walked  a  little  lame  as  he  approached 
us,  and  I  at  once  concluded  that  he  was  Ned  Buntline. 

."  He  has  a  good  mark  to  shoot  at  on  the  left  breast,"  said 
I  to  Major  Brown,  "  but  he  looks  like  a  soldier."  As  he 
came  up,  Major  Brown  said  : 

"  Cody,  allow  me  to  introduce  you  to  Colonel  E.  B.  C. 
Judson,  otherwise  known  as  Ned  Buntline." 

"Colonel  Judson,  I  am  glad  to  meet  you,"  said  I ;  "the 
Major  tells  me  that  you  are  to  accompany  us  on  the  scout." 

"Yes,  my  boy,  so  I  am,"  said  he;  "I  was  to  deliver  a 
temperance  lecture  to-night,  but  no  lectures  for  ine  when 
there  is  a  prospect  for  a  fight.  The  Major  has  kindly  offered 
me  a  horse,  but  I  don't  know  how  I'll  stand  the  ride,  for  I 
haven't  done  any  riding  lately  ;  but  when  I  was  a  young  man 
I  spent  several  years  among  the  fur  companies  of  the  North- 
west, and  was  a  good  rider  and  an  excellent  shot." 

"  The  Major  has  given  you  a  fine  horse,"  and  you'll  soon 
find  yourself  at  home  in  the  saddle,"  said  I. 


264:  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

The  command  soon  pulled  out  for  the  South  Platte  River, 
which  was  very  wide  and  high,  owing  to  recent  mountain 
rains,  and  in  crossing  it  we  had  to  swim  our  horses  in  some 
places.  Buntline  was  the  first  man  across.  We  reached 
O'Fallon's  at  eleven  o'clock,  and  in  a  short  time  I  succeeded 
in  finding  the  Indian  trail ;  the  party  seemed  to  be  a  small 
one,  which  had  come  up  from  the  south.  "We  followed  their 
track  to  the  North  Platte,  but  as  they  had  a.  start  of  two 
days,  Major  Brown  abandoned  the  pursuit,  and  returned  to 
Fort  McPherson,  while  I  went  back  to  Fort  Sedgwick, 
accompanied  by  Buntline. 

During  this  short  scout,  Buntline  had  asked  me  a  great 
many  questions,  and  lie  was  determined  to  go  out  on  the 
next  expedition  with  me,  providing  he  could  obtain  permis- 
sion from  the  commanding  officer.  I  introduced  him  to  the 
officers — excepting  those  he  already  knew — and  invited  him 
to  become  my  guest  while  he  remained  at  the  post,  and  gave 
him  my  pony  Powder  Face  to  ride. 

By  this  time  I  had  learned  that  my  horse  Tall  Bull 
was  a  remarkably  fast  runner,  and  therefore  when  Lieu- 
tenant Mason,  who  was  quite  a  sport  and  owned  a  racer, 
challenged  me  to  a  race,  I  immediately  accepted  it.  We 
were  to  run  our  horses  a  single  dash  of  half  a  mile  for  one 
hundred  dollars  a  side.  Several  of  the  officers,  and  also 
Keub.  Wood,  the  post-trader,  bantered  me  for  side  bets,  and 
I  took  them  all  until  I  had  put  up  my  last  cent  on  Tall 
Bull. 

The  ground  was  measured  off,  the  judges  were  selected, 
and  all  other  preliminaries  were  arranged.  We  rode  our 
horses  ourselves,  and  coming  up  to  the  score  nicely  we  let 
them  go.  I  saw  from  the  start  that  it  would  be  mere  play 
to  beat  the  Lieutenant's  horse,  and  therefore  I  held  Tall 
Bull  in  check,  so  that  none  could  see  how  fast  he  really 
could  run.  I  easily  won  the  race,  and  pocketed  a  snug  little 
sum  of  money.  Of  course  everybody  was  now  talking 
horse.  Major  North  remarked  that  if  Tall  Bull  could 


HORSE  RACING.  265 

beat  the  Pawnees'  fast  horse,  I  could  break  his  whole  com- 
mand. 

The  next  day  the  troops  were  paid  off,  the  Pawnees  with 
the  rest,  and  for  two  or  three  days  they  did  nothing'but  run 
horse-races,  as  all  the  recently  captured  horses  had  to  be 
tested  to  find  out  the  swiftest  among  them.  Finally  the 
Pawnees  wanted  to  run  their  favorite  horse  against  Tall 
Bull,  and  I  accordingly  arranged  a  race  with  them.  They 
raised  three  hundred  dollars  and  bet  it  on  their  horse,  while 
of  course,  I  backed  Tall  Bull  with  an  equal  amount,  and 
in  addition  took  numerous  side  bets.  The  race  was  a  single 
dash  of  a  mile,  and  Tall  Bull  won  it  without  any  diffi- 
culty. I  was  ahead  on  this  race  about  seven  hundred  dol- 
lars, and  the  horse  was  fast  getting  a  reputation.  Hereto- 
fore nobody  would  bet  on  him,  but  now  he  had  plenty  of 
backers. 

I  also  made  a  race  for  my  pony  Powder  Face,  against 
a  fast  pony  belonging  to  Captain  Lute  North.  I  selected  a 
small  boy,  living  at  the  post  to  ride  Powder  Face,  while 
an  Indian  boy  was  to  ride  the  other  pony.  The  Pawnees  as 
usual  wanted  to  bet  on  their  pony,  but  as  I  had  not  yet 
fully  ascertained  the  running  qualities  of  Powder  Face, 
I  did  not  care  about  risking  very  much  money  on  him. 
Had  I  known  him  as  well  then  as  I  did  afterwards  I  would 
have  backed  him  for  every  dollar  I  had,  for  he  proved  to  be 
one  of  the  swiftest  ponies  I  ever  saw,  and  had  evidently 
been  kept  as  a  racer. 

The  race  was  to  be  four  hundred  yards,  and  when  I  led 
the  pony  over  the  track  he  seemed  to  understand  what  he 
was  there  for.  North  and  I  finally  put  the  riders  on,  and  it 
was  all  I  could  do  to  hold  the  fiery  little  animal  after 
the  boy  became  seated  on  his  back.  He  jumped  around 
and  made  such  quick  movements,  that  the  boy  was  not 
at  all  confident  of  being  able  to  stay  on  him.  The  order 
to  start  was  at  last  given  by  the  judges,  and  as  I  brought 
Powder  Face  up  to  the  score  and  the  word  "  go "  was 


266  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

given,  he  jumped  away  so  quickly  that  he  left  his  rider  sit- 
ting on  the  ground ;  notwithstanding  he  ran  through  and 
won  the  race  without  him.  It  was  an  easy  victory,  and 
after  that  I  could  get  up  no  more  races.  Thus  passed  the 
time  while  we  were  at  Fort  Sedgwick. 

General  Carr  having  obtained  a  leave  of  absence,  Colonel 
Royal  was  given  the  command  of  an  expedition  that  was 
ordered  to  go  out  after  the  Indians,  and  in  a  few  days — after 
having  rested  a  couple  of  weeks — we  set  out  for  the  Repub- 
lican ;  having  learned  that  there  were  plenty  of  Indians  in 
that  section  of  the  country.  At  Frenchman's  Fork  we 
discovered  an  Indian  village,  but  did  not  surprise  it,  for  its 
people  had  noticed  us  approaching,  and  were  retreating  when 
we  reached  their  camping-place.  We  chased  them  down 
the  stream,  and  they  finally  turned  to  the  left,  went  north 
and  crossed  the  South  Platte  river  five  miles  above 
Ogallala.  We  pushed  rapidly  after  them,  following  them 
across  the  North  Platte  and  on  through  the  sand-hills 
towards  the  Niobrara ;  but  as  they  were  making  much  better 
time  than  we,  the  pursuit  was  abandoned. 

While  we  were  in  the  sand-hills, .  scouting  the  Niobrara 
country,  the  Pawnee  Indians  brought  into  camp,  one  night, 
some  very  large  bones,  one  of  which  a  surgeon  of  the  expe- 
dition pronounced  to  be  the  thigh-bone  of  a  human  being. 
The  Indians  claimed  that  the  bones  they  had  found  were 
those  of  a  person  belonging  to  a  race  of  people  who  a  long 
time  ago  lived  in  this  country.  That  there  was  once  a  race 
of  men  on  the  earth  whose  size  was  about  three  times  that  of 
an  ordinary  man,  and  they  were  so  swift  and  powerful  that 
they  could  run  along-side  of  a  buffalo,  and  taking  the  animal 
in  one  arm  could  tear  off  a  leg  and  eat  the  meat  as  they 
walked.  These  giants  denied  the  existence  of  a  Great  Spirit,. 
and  when  they  heard  the  thunder  or  saw  the  lightning  they 
laughed  at  it  and  said  that  they  were  greater  than  either. 
This  so  displeased  the  Great  Spirit  that  he  caused  a  great 
rain-storm  to  come,  and  the  water  kept  rising  higher  and 


AN  INDIAN  LEGEND. 


267 


higher  so  that  it  drove  those  proud  and  conceited  giants 
from  the  low  grounds  to  the  hills,  and  thence  to  the  moun- 
tains, but  at  last  even  the  mountain  tops  were  submerged, 
and  then  those  mammoth  men  were  all  drowned.  After 
the  flood  had  subsided,  the  Great  Spirit  came  to  the  con- 
clusion that  he  had  made  man  too  large  and  powerful,  and 
that  he  would  therefore  correct  the  mistake  by  creating  a 
race  of  men  of  smaller  size  and  less  strength.  This  is  the 
reason,  say  the  Indians,  that  modern  men  are  small  and  not 
like  the  giants  of  old,  and  they  claim  that  this  story  is  a 
matter  of  Indian  history,  which  has  been  handed  down, 
among  them  from  time  immemorial. 

As  we  had  no  wagons  with  us  at  the  time  this  large  and 
heavy  bone  was  found,  we  were  obliged  to  leave  it. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

ADMINISTERING   JUSTICE. 

OK  returning  to  Fort  McPlierson  we  found  that  Brevet 
Major  General  W.  H.  Emory,  Colonel  of  the  Fifth  Cav- 
alry, and  Brevet  Brigadier  General  Thomas  Duncan,  Lieu- 
tenant Colonel  of  the  regiment,  had  arrived  there  during 
our  absence.  General  Emory  had  heen  appointed  to  the 
command  of  the  District  of  the  Republican,  with  headquar- 
ters at  Fort  McPlierson.  As  the  command  had  been  con- 
tinually in  the  field,  it  was  generally  thought  that  we  were  to 
have  a  long  rest ;  and  it  looked  as  if  this  post  was  to  be  my 
home  and  headquarters  for  some  time  to  come.  I  accord- 
ingly sent  to  St.  Louis  for  my  wife  and  daughter  to  join  me 
there.  General  Emory  promised  to  build  a  house  for  me, 
but  before  the  building  was  completed  my  family  arrived. 

During  the  fall  of  1869  there  were  two  or  three  scouting 
expeditions  sent  out ;  but  nothing  of  very  <rreat  importance 
was  accomplished  by  them.  I  found  Fort  McPlierson  to  be 
a  lively  and  pleasant  post  to  be  stationed  at,  especially  as 
there  was  plenty  of  game  in  the  vicinity,  and  within  a  day's 
ride  there  were  large  herds  of  deer,  antelope  and  elk. 

During  the  winter  of  1869— 70  I  spent  a  great  deal  of 
time  in  pursuit  of  srame,  and  during  the  season  we  had  two 
hunting  parties  of  Englishmen  there  ;  one  party  being  that 
of  Mr.  Flyun,  and  the  other  that  of  George  Boyd  Houghton, 

268 


THE  LAST  OF  POWDER  FACE.  269 

of  London — the  well  known  caricaturist.  Among  their 
amusements  were  several  horse  races,  which  I  arranged,  and 
jji  which  Tall  Bull  and  Powder  Face  were  invariably  the 
winners.  Tall  Ball  by  this  time  had  such  a  reputation  as 
a  running  horse,  that  it  was  difficult  to  make  a  race  for  him. 
I  remember  one  however,  in  which  he  ran  against  a  horse 
in  Captain  Spaulding's  Company  of  the  Second  Cavalry. 

This  race  was  rather  a  novel  affair.  I  had  made  a  bet  that 
Tall  Bull  wrould  beat  the  Second  Cavalry  horse  around  a  one 
mile  track,  and,  during  the  time  that  he  was  running,  I  would 
jump  off  and  on  the  horse  eight  times.  I  rode  the  horse 
bareback ;  seized  his  mane  with  my  left  hand,  rested  my 
right  on  his  withers,  and  while  he  was  going  at  full  speed,  I 
jumped  to  the  ground,  and  sprang  again  upon  his  back,  eight 
times  in  succession.  Such  feats  I  had  seen  performed  in 
the  circus  and  I  had  practiced  considerably  at  it  with  Tall 
Bull,  so  that  I  was  certain  of  winning  the  race  in  the  man- 
ner agreed  upon. 

Early  one  morning,  in  the  spring  of  1870,  the  Indians, 
who  had  approached  during  the  night,  stole  some  twenty-one 
head  of  horses  from  Mr.  John  Burke — a  Government  con- 
tractor— Ben.  Gallagher  and  Jack  Waite.  They  also  ran  off 
some  horses  from  the  post ;  among  the  number  being  my 
pony  Powder  Face.  The  commandant  at  once  ordered 
out  Lieutenant  Thomas  with  Company  I  of  the  Fifth  Cav- 
alry, and  directed  me  to  accompany  them  as  trailer.  We 
discovered  the  trail  after  some  little  difficulty,  as  the  Indians 
were  continually  trying  to  hide  it,  and  followed  it  sixty 
miles,  when  darkness  set  in. 

We  were  now  within  about  four  miles  of  Red  Willow 
Creek  and  1  felt  confident  the  Indians  would  camp  that 
night  in  that  vicinity.  Advising  Lieutenant  Thomas  to  halt 
his  company  and  "  lay  low  "  I  proceeded  on  to  the  creek, 
where,  moving  around  cautiously,  I  suddenly  discovered 
horses  feeding  in  a  bend  of  the  stream  on  the  opposite  side. 
I  hurried  back  to  the  troops  with  the  information,  and  Lieu- 
16 


270  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

tenant  Thomas  moved  his  company  to  the  bank  of  the  creek, 
with  the  intention  of  remaining  there  until  daylight,  and 
then,  if  possible,  surprise  the  Indians.  ^ 

Just  at  break  of  day  we  mounted  our  horses,  and  after 
riding  a  short  distance  we  ascended  a  slight  elevation r 
when,  not  over  one  hundred  yards  distant,  we  looked  down 
into  the  Indian  camp.  The  Indians,  preparing  to  make  an 
early  start,  had  driven  up  their  horses  and  were  in  the  act 
of  mounting,  when  they  saw  us  charging  down  upon  them* 
In  a  moment  they  sprang  upon  their  ponies  and  dashed 
away.  Had  it  not  been  for  the  creek,  which  lay  between  us- 
and  them,  we  would  have  got  them  before  they  could  have 
mounted  their  horses;  but  as  it  was  rather  miry,  we  were 
unexpectedly  delayed.  The  Indians  fired  some  thots  at  us 
while  we  were  crossing,  but  as  soon  as  we  got  across  we 
went  for  them  in  hot  pursuit.  A  few  of  the  red-skins 
had  not  had  time  to  mount  and  had  started  on  foot  down  the 
creek  toward  the  brush.  One  of  these  was  killed. 

A  number  of  our  soldiers,  who  had  been  detailed  before 
the  charge  to  gather  up  any  of  the  Indian  horses  that  would 
be  stampeded,  succeeded   in   capturing  thirty-two.     I.  hur- 
riedly looked  over  them  to  see  if  Powder  Face  was  among 
them ;  but  he  was  not  there.     Starting  in   pursuit    of   the 
fugitives  I  finally  espied  an  Indian  mounted  on  my  favorite, 
dashing  away  and  leading  all  the  others.     We  continued  the 
chase  for  two  or  three  miles,  overtaking  a  couple  who  were 
mounted  upon  one  horse.     Coining  up  behind  them  I  fired 
my  rifle,  when    about   thirty  feet  distant  ;  the  ball   passed 
through  the  backs  of  both,  and  they  fell  headlong  to  the 
ground;  but  I  made  no  stop  however  just  then,  for  I  had 
my  eye  on  the   gentleman  who  was  riding    Powder  Face. 
It  seemed  to  be  fun  for  him  to  run  away  from  us,  and  run 
away  he  did,  for  the  last  I  saw  of  him  was  when  he  went 
over  a  divide,  about  three  miles  away.     I  bade  him  adieu. 
On  my    way   back   to   the   Indian    camp    I  stopped   and 
secured  the  war  bonnets  and  accoutrements  of  the  pair  I 


GEN'L.  DUNCAN'S  EXPEDITION  271 

had  killed,  and   at  the  same  time  gently  "raised  their  hair." 

We  were  feeling  rather  tired  and  hungry,  as  we  had 
started  out  on  the  trail  thirty-six  hours  before  without  a 
breakfast  or  taking  any  food  with  us ;  but  not  a  murmur  or 
complaint  was  heard  among  the  men.  In  the  abandoned 
Indian  camp,  however,  we  found  enough  dried  buffalo  meat 
to  give  us  all  a  meal,  and  after  remaining  there  for  two 
hours,  to  rest  our  animals,  we  started  on  our  return  to  Fort 
McPherson,  where  we  arrived  at  night,  having  traveled  130 
miles  in  two  days. 

This  being  the  first  fight  Lieutenant  Thomas  had  ever 
commanded  in,  he  felt  highly  elated  over  his  success,  and 
hoped  that  his  name  would  be  mentioned  in  the  special 
orders  for  gallantry  ;  sure  enough  when  we  returned  both 
he,  myself  and  the  whole  command  received  a  compli- 
mentary mention  in  a  special  order.  This  he  certainly 
deserved  for  he  was  a  brave,  energetic,  dashing  little  officer. 
The  war  bonnets  which  I  had  captured  I  turned  over  to 
General  Carr.  with  the  request  that  he  present  them  to  Gen- 
eral Augur,  whose  daughters  were  visiting  at  the  post  at  the 
time. 

Shortly  after  this,  another  expedition  was  organized  at 
Fort  McPherson  for  the  Republican  river  country.  It  was 
commanded  by  General  Duncan,  who  was  a  jolly,  blustering 
old  fellow,  and  the  officers  who  knew  him  wrell,  said  that  we 
would  have  a  good  time,  as  he  was  very  fond  of  hunting. 
He  was  a  good  fighter,  and  one  of  the  officers  said  that  an 
Indian  bullet  never  could  hurt  him,  as  he  had  been  shot  in 
the  head  with  a  cannon  ball  which  had  not  injured  him  in 
the  least;  another  said  the  ball  glanced  off  and  killed  one  of 
the  toughest  mules  in  the  army. 

The  Pawnee  scouts  who  had  been  mustered  out  of  service, 
during  the  winter  of  1869  and  '70,  were  reorganized  to 
accompany  this  expedition.  I  was  glad  of  this,  as  I  had 
become  quite  attached  to  one  of  the  officers,  Major  North, 
and  to  many  of  the  Indians.  The  only  white  scout  we  had 


272  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

at  the  post,  besides  myself  at  that  time,  was  John  Y.  Kel- 
son, whose  Indian  name  was  Clia-Sha-Cha-Opoyeo,*  which 
interpreted  means  Ked-Willow-Fill-the-Pipe.  This  man  is  a 
character  in  his  way  ;  he  has  a  Sioux  squaw  for  a  wife,  and 
consequently  a  half-breed  family.  John  is  a  good  fellow, 
though  as  a  liar  he  has  but  few  equals  and  no  superior. 

We  started  out  from  the  post  with  the  regimental  band 
playing  the  lively  air  of  "  The  Girl  I  Left  Behind  Me."  We 
made  but  a  short  march  that  day,  and  camped  at  night  at 
the  head  of  Fox  Creek.  Xext  morning  General  Duncan  sent 
me  word  by  his  orderly  that  I  was  to  bring  up  my  gun  and 
shoot  at  a  mark  with  him  ;  but  I  can  assure  the  reader  that 
I  did  not  feel  much  like  shooting  anything  except  myself,  for 
on  the  night  before,  I  had  returned  to  Fort  McPherson  and 
spent  several  hours  in  interviewing  the  sutler's  store,  in 
company  with  Major  Brown.  I  looked  around  for  my  gun, 
and  found  that  I  had  left  it  behind.  The  last  I  could 
remember  about  it  was  that  I  had  it  at  the  sutler's  store.  I 
informed  Major  Brown  of  my  loss,  who  said  that  I  was  a 
nice  scout  to  start  out  without  a  gun.  I  replied  that  that 
was  not  the  worst  of  it,  as  General  Duncan  had  sent  for  me 
to  shoot  a  match  with  him,  and  I  did  not  know  what  to  do ; 
for  if  the  old  gentleman  discovered  my  predicament,  he 
would  very  likely  severely  reprimand  me. 

"  Well,  Cody,"  said  he,  "  the  best  you  can  do  is  to  make 
some  excuse,  and  then  go  and  borrow  a  gun  from  some  of 
the  men,  and  tell  the  General  that  you  lent  yours  to  some 
man  to  go  hunting  with  to-day.  While  we  are  waiting 
here,  I  will  send  back  to  the  post  and  get  your  rifle  for  you." 

I  succeeded  in  obtaining  a  gun  from  John  Nelson,  and  then 
marching  up  to  the  GeneraFs  headquarters  I  shot  the  de- 
sired match  with  liim,  which  resulted  in  his  favor. 

This  was  the  first  scout  the  Pawnees  had  been  out  on 


*  Since  traveled  with  me  in  my  Dramatic  Combination  as  interpreter  for 
Sioux  Indians. 


PAWNEE  SENTINELS.  273 

under  command  of  General  Duncan,  and  in  stationing  liis 
guards  around  the  camp  lie  posted  them  in  a  manner  entirely 
different  from  that  of  General  Carr  and  Colonel  Royal,  and 
he  insisted  that  the  different  posts  should  call  out  the  hour 
of  the  night  thus  : 

"  Post  No.  1,  nine  o'clock,  all  is  well !  Post  No.  2,  nine 
o'clock,  all  is  well !  "  etc. 

The  Pawnees,  who  had  their  regular  turns  at  standing 
upon  guard,  were  ordered  to  call  the  hour  the  same  as  the 
white  soldiers.  This  was  very  difficult  for  them  to  do,  as 
there  were  but  few  of  them  who  could  express  themselves  in 
English.  Major  North  explained  to  them  that  when  the 
man  on  post  next  to  them  should  call  out  the  hour,  they 
must  call  it  also  as  near  like  him  as  possihle.  It  was  very 
amusing  to  hear  them  do  this.  They  would  try  to  remem- 
ber what  the  other  man  had  said  on  the  post  next  to  them. 
For  instance,  a  white  soldier  would  call  out :  "Post  ~No.  1, 
half-past  nine  o'clock,  all  is  well !  "  The  Indian  standing 
next  to  him  knew  that  he  was  bound  to  say  something  in 
English,  and  he  would  sing  out  something  like  the  fol- 
lowing: 

"  Poss  number  half  pass  five  cents — go  to !  I  don't 

care ! " 

This  system  was  really  so  ridiculous  and  amusing  that  the 
General  had  to  give  it  up,  and  the  order  was  accordingly 
countermanded. 

Nothing  of  any  great  interest  occurred  on  this  inarch, 
until  one  day,  while  proceeding  up  Prairie  Dog  Creek,* 
Major  North  and  myself  went  out  in  advance  of  the  com- 
mand several  miles  and  killed  a  number  of  buffaloes.  Night 
was  approaching,  and  I  began  to  look  around  for  a  suitable 
camping  groupd  for  the  command.  Major  North  dis- 
mounted from  his  horse  and  was  resting,  while  I  rode 


*  Near  the  lonely  camp  where  I  had  so  long  been  laid  up  with  a  broken 
leg,  when  trapping  years  before  with  Dave  Harrington. 


274  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

down  to  the  stream  to  see  if  there  was  plenty  of  grass  in 
the  vicinity.  I  found  an  excellent  camping  spot,  and  return- 
ing to  Major  North  told  him  that  I  would  ride  over  the 
hill  a  little  way,  so  that  the  advance  guard  could  see  me. 
This  I  did,  and  when  the  advance  came  in  sight  I  dis- 
mounted and  laid  down  upon  the  grass  to  rest. 

Suddenly  1  heard  three  or  four  shots,  and  in  a  ,few 
moments  Major  North  came  dashing  up  towards  me,  pur- 
sued by  eight  or  ten  Indians.  I  instantly  sprang  into  my 
saddle,  and  fired  a  few  shots  at  the  Indians,  who  by  this 
time  had  all  come  in  sight,  to  the  number  of  fifty.  We 
turned  our 'horses  and  ran,  the  bullets  flying  after  us  thick 
and  fast — my  whip  being  shot  from  my  hand  and  daylight 
being  put  through  the  crown  of  my  hat.  We  were  in  close 
quarters,  when  suddenly  Lieutenant  Valkmar  came  gallop- 
ing up  to  our  relief  with  several  soldiers,  and  the  Indians 
seeing  them  whirled  and  retreated.  As  soon  as  Major 
North  got  in  sight  of  his  Pawnees,  he  began  riding  in  a 
circle.  This  was  a  sign  to  them  that  there  were  hostile 
Indians  in  front,  and  in  a  moment  the  Pawnees  broke  ranks 
pell-mell  and,  with  Major  North  at  their  head,  started  for 
the  flying  warriors.  The  rest  of  the  command  pushed  rap- 
idly forward  also,  and  chased  the  enemy  for  three  or  four 
miles,  killing  three  of  them. 

But  this  was  a  wrong  move  on  our  part,  as  their  village 
was  on  Prairie  Dog  Creek,  while  they  led  us  in  a  different 
direction  ;  one  Indian  only  kept  straight  on  up  the  creek — a 
messenger  to  the  village.  Some  of  the  command,  who  had 
followed  him,  stirred  up  the  village  and  accelerated  its 
departure.  We  finally  got  back  to  the  main  force,  and 
then  learned  that  we  had  made  a  great  mistake.  Now  com- 
menced another  stern  chase. 

The  second  day  that  we  had  been  following  these 
Indians  we  came  upon  an  old  squaw,  whom  they  had  left  on 
the  prairie  to  die.  Tier  people  had  built  for  her  a  little 
shade  or  lodge,  and  had  given  her  some  provisions,  sufficient 


THE  DESERTED  SQUAW.  275 

to  last  her  on  her  trip  to  the  Happy  Hunting  grounds. 
This  the  Indians  often  do  when  pursued  by  an  enemy, 
and  one  of  their  number  becomes  too  old  and  feeble  to 
travel  any  longer.  This  squaw  was  recognized  by  John 
Nelson  who  said  that  she  was  a  relative  of  his  wife.  From 
her  we  learned  that  the  flying  Indians  were  known  as  Paw- 
nee, Killer's  band,  and  that  they  had  lately  killed  Buck's 
surveying  party,  consisting  of  eight  or  nine  men ;  the  mas- 
sacre having  occurred  a  few  days  before  on  Beaver  Creek. 
We  knew  that  they  had  had  a  fight  with  surveyors,  as  we 
found  quite  a  number  of  surveying  instruments,  which 
had  been  left  in  the  abandoned  camp.  We  drove  these 
Indians  across  the  Platte  river  and  then  returned  to  Fort 
McPherson,  bringing  the  old  squaw  with  us,  from  there  she 
was  sent  to  the  Spotted  Tail  Agency. 

During  my  absence,  my  wrife  had  given  birth  to  a  son, 
and  he  was  several  weeks  old  when  I  returned.  No  name  had 
yet  been  given  him  and  I  selected  that  of  Elmo  Judson,  in 
honor  of  Ned  Buntline;  but  this  the  officers  and  scouts 
objected  to.  Major  Brown  proposed  that  we  should  call 
him  Kit  Carson,  and  it  \vas  finally  settled  that  that  should 
be  his  name. 

During  the  summer  we  made  one  or  two  more  scouts  and 
had  a  few  skirmishes  with  the  .Indians:  but  nothing  of  any 
great  importance  transpired.  In  the  fall  of  1870,  while  I 
was  a  witness  in  a  court  martial  at  Fort  D.  A.  Russell  I 
woke  up  one  morning  and  found  that  I  was  dead  broke; 
— this  is  not  an  unusual  occurrence  to  a  frontiersman,  or  an 
author  I  may  add,  especially  when  he  is  endeavoring  to  kill 
time — to  raise  necessary  funds  I  sold  my  race  horse  Tall 
Bull  to  Lieutenant  Mason,  who  had  long  wanted  him. 

In  the  winter  of  1870  and  1871  I  first  met 'George  Watts 
'Garland,  an  English  gentleman,  and  a  great  hunter,  whom  I 
had  the  pleasure  of  guiding  on  several  hunts  and  with  whom 
I  spent  some  weeks.  During  the  winter  1  also  took  several 
parties  out  on  the  Loupe  River  country,  hunting  and 


276  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

trapping.  Although  I  was  still  chief  of  scouts  I  did  not 
have  much  to  do,  as  the  Indians  were  comparatively  quiet., 
thus  giving  me  plenty  of  time  for  sporting. 

In  the  spring  of  1871  several  short  scouting  expeditions 
were  sent  out  from  Fort  McPherson,  but  all  with  minor 
results. 

About  this  time  General  Emory  was  considerably  annoyed 
by  petty  offenses  committed  in  the  vicinity  of  the  post,  and 
as  there  was  no  justice  of  the  peace  in  the  neighborhood,  he 
was  anxious  to  have  such  an  officer  there  to  attend  to  the 
civilians;  one  day  he  remarked  to  me  that  I  would  make 
an  excellent  justice. 

"  General,  you  compliment  me  rather  too  highly,  for  I 
don't  know  any  \more  about  law  than  a  government  mule 
does  about  book-keeping,"  said  I. 

"  That  doesn't  make  any  difference,"  said  he,  "for  I  know 
that  you  will  make  a  good  'Squire."  He  accordingly  had 
the  county  commissioners  appoint  me  to  the  office  of  justice 
of  the  peace,  and  I  soon  received  my  commission. 

One  morning  a  man  came  rushing  up  to  my  house  and 
stated  that  he  wanted  to  get  out  a  writ  of  replevin,  to  recover 
possession  of  a  horse  which  a  stranger  was  taking  out  of  the 
country.  I  had  no  blank  forms,  and  had  not  yet  received 
the  statutes  of  Nebraska  to  copy  from,  so  I  asked  the  man  : 

"  Where  is  the  fellow  who  has  got  your  horse  ? " 

"  He  is  going  up  the  road,  and  is  about  two  miles  away,'* 
replied  he. 

"  Yery  well,"  said  I,  "  I  will  get  the  writ  ready  in  a  min- 
ute or  two." 

I  saddled  up  my  horse,  and  then  taking  my  old  reliable 
gun,  "  Lucretia,"  I  said  to  the  man  :  "  That's  the  best  writ 
of  replevin  that  I  can  think  of;  come  along,  and  we'll  get 
that  horse,  or  know  the  reason  why." 

We  soon  overtook  the  stranger  who  was  driving  a  herd  of 
horses,  and  as  we  came  up  to  him,  I  said  : 

"  Hello,  sir ;  I  am  an  officer,  and  have  an  attachment  for 


A  JUSTICE  OF  THE  PEACE.  277 

that  horse,"  and  at  the  same  time  I  pointed  out  the  animal. 

"  Well,  sir,  what  are  you  going  to  do  about  it  ? "  lie 
inquired. 

"  I  propose  to  take  you  and  the  horse  back  to  the  post,^ 
said  I. 

"  You  can  take  the  horse,"  said  he,  "  but  I  haven't  the 
time  to  return  with  you." 

"  You'll  have  to  take  the  time,  or  pay  the  costs  here  and 
now/'  said  I. 

"  How  much  are  the  costs?  " 

"  Twenty  dollars." 

"Here's  your  money,"  said  he,  as  he  handed  me  the 
greenbacks. 

I  then  gave  him  a  little  friendly  advice,  and  told  him  that 
he  was  released  from  custody.  He  went  on  his  way  a  wiser 
and  a  poorer  man,  while  the  owner  of  the  horse  and  myself 
returned  to  the  fort.  I  pocketed  the  twenty  dollars,  of 
course.  Some  people  might  think  it  was  not  a  square  way  of 
doing  business,  but  I  didn't  know  any  better  just  then.  I 
had  several  little  cases  of  this  kind,  and  I  became  better 
posted  on  law  in  the  course  of  time,  being  assisted  by  Lieu- 
tenant Burr  Keilly,  of  the  Fifth  Cavalry,  who  had  been 
educated  for  a  lawyer. 

One  evening  I  was  called  upon  to  perform  a  marriage  cer- 
emony. The  bridegroom  was  one  of  the  sergeants  of  the 
post.  I  had  "braced  up"  for  the  occasion  by  imbibing- 
rather  freely  of  stimulants,  and  when  I  arrived  at  the  house, 
with  a  copy  of  the  Statutes  of  Nebraska,  which  I  had 
recently  received,  I  felt  somewhat  confused.  Whether  my 
bewilderment  was  owing  to  the  importance  of  the  occa- 
sion and  the  large  assembly,  or  to  the  effect  of  Louis  Woodin's- 
"tanglefoot."  I  cannot  now  distinctly  remember — but  my 
suspicions  have  always  been  that  it  was  due  to  the  latter 
cause.  I  looked  carefully  through  the  statutes  to  find  the 
marriage  ceremony,  but  my  efforts  were  unsuccessful. 
Finally  the  time  came  for  the  knot  to  be  tied.  I  told  the 
couple  to  stand  up,  and  then  I  said  to  the  bridegroom  : 


278 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


"  Do  you  take  this  woman  to  be  ypur  lawful  wedded  wife, 
to  support  and  love  lier  through  life  ?  " 

"  I  do,"  was  the  reply. 

Then  addressing  myself  to  the  bride,  I  said,  "Do  you 
take  this  man  to  be  your  lawful  wedded  husband  through 
life,  to  love,  honor  and  obey  him  ?  " 


A    Vi:i>m><>    CEREMONY, 


"  1  do,"  was  her  response. 

"  Then  join  hands,"  said  I  to  both  of'them  ;  "I  now  pro- 
nounce you  to  be  man  and  wife,  and  whomsoever  God 
and  Buffalo  Bill  have  joined  together  let  no  man  put  asunder. 
May  you  live  long  and  prosper.  Amen." 

This  concluded  the  interesting  ceremony,  which  was  fol- 
lowed by  the  usual  festivities  on  such  occasions.  I  was 
liighly  complimented  for  the  elegant  and  eloquent  manner 
in  which  I  had  tied  the  matrimonial  knot. 

During  the  summer  of  1871,  Professor  Marsh,  of  Yale 
College,  came  out  to  McPherson,  with  a  large  party  of  stu- 


A  SCIENTIFIC  BONE  HUNT. 


279 


dents  to  have  a  hunt  and  to  look  for  fossils.  Professor 
Marsh  had  heard  of  the  big  bone  which  had  been  found  by 
the  Pawnees  in  the  Niobrara  country,  and  he  intended  to 
look  for  that  as  well  as  other  bones.  He  accordingly  secured 
the  services  of  Major  Frank  North  and  the  Pawnees  as  an 
escort.  I  was  also  to  accompany  the  bone-hunters,  and 
would  have  done  so  had  it  not  been  for  the  fact  that  just  at 


A    RIDE   1'OR    LIFE. 


that  time  I  was  ordered  out  with  a  small  scouting  party  to 
go  after  some  Indians. 

,  The  day  before  the  Professor  arrived  at  the  fort,  I  had 
been  out  hunting  on  the  north  side  of  the  North  Platte 
lliver,  near  Pawnee  Springs,  with  several  companions,  when 
we  were  suddenly  attacked  by  Indians,  who  wounded  one 
of  our  number,  John  Weister.  We  stood  the  Indians  off  for 
a  little  while,  and  "Weister  got  even  with  them  by  killing 
one  of  their  party.  The  Indians,  however,  outnumbered  n: , 
and  at  last  we  were  forced  to  make  a  run  for  our  lives.  In. 


230  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

this  we  succeeded,  and  reached  the  fort  in  safety.  The  Gen- 
eral wanted  to  have  the  Indians  pursued,  and  said  he  could 
not  spare  me  to  accompany  Professor  Marsh. 

However,  I  had  the  opportunity  to  make  the  acquaintance 
of  the  eminent  Professor,  whom  I  found  to  be  not  only  a 
well-posted  person  but  a  very  entertaining  gentleman.  He 
gave  me  a  geological  history  of  the  country  ;  told  me  in  what 
section  fossils  were  to  be  found  ;  and  otherwise  entertained 
me  with  several  scientific  yarns,  some  of  which  seemed  too- 
complicated  and  too  mysterious  to  be  believed  by  an  ordi- 
nary man  like  myself;  but  it  was  all  clear  to  him.  I  rode 
out  with  him  several  miles,  as  he  was  starting  on  his  bone- 
hunting  expedition,  and  I  greatly  enjoyed  the  ride.  His 
party  had  been  provided  with  Government  transportation 
and  his  students  were  all  mounted  on  Government  horees. 

As  we  rode  along  he  delivered  a  scientific  lecture,  and  he 
convinced  me  that  he  knew  what  he  was  talking  about.  I 
finally  bade  him  good-bye,  and  returned  to  the  post.  While 
the  fossil-hunters  were  out  on  their  expedition,  we  had  sev- 
eral lively  little  skirmishes  with  the  Indians.  After  having 
been  absent  some  little  time  Professor  Marsh  and  his  party 
came  back  with  their  wagons  loaded  down  with  all  kinds  of 
bones,  and  the  Professor  was  in  his  glory.  lie  had  evi- 
dently struck  a  bone-yard,  and  "gad!"  *  wasn't  he  happy  ! 
But  they  had  failed  to  find  the  big  bone  which  the  Pawnees 
had  unearthed  the  vear  before. 


*A  favorite  expression  of  the  Professor's. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

HUNTING    EXPEDITIOX. 

EARLY  in  the  month  of  September,  1871,  information 
was  received  at  Fort  McPherson  that  General  Sheridan 
and  a  party  of  invited  friends  were  coming  out  to  the  post 
to  have  a  grand  hunt  in  the  vicinity,  and  to  explore  tho 
country  from  McPherson  to  Fort  Hays,  in  Kansas.  On  the 
morning  of  September  22d  they  arrived  in  a  special  car  at 
^Torth  Platte,  a  station  on  the  Union  Pacific,  distant  eighteen 
miles  from  Fort  McPherson. 

The  party  consisted  of  General  Sheridan,  Lawrence  R. 
Jerome,  James  Gordon  Bennett,  of  the  New  York  Herald; 
Leonard  W.  Jerome,  Carroll  Livingston,  Major  J.  G.  Heck- 
sher,  General  Fitzhngh,  General  II.  E.  Davies,  Captain  M. 
Edward  Rogers,  Colonel  J.  Sclmyler  Crosby,  Samuel  John- 
son, General  Anson  Stager,  of  tfie  Western  Union  Tele- 
graph Company  ;  Charles  Wilson,  editor  of  the  -Chicago 
Evening  Journal ;  General  Rucker,  Quartermaster-General, 
and  Dr.  Asch — the  two  last-named  being  of  General  Sheri- 
dan's staff.  They  were  met  at  the  station  by  General 
Emory  and  Major  Brown,  with  a  cavalry  company  as  escort 
and  a  sufficient  number  of  vehicles  to  carry  the  distin- 
guished visitors  and  their  baggage. 

A  brisk  drive  of  less  than  two  hours  over  a  hard  and 

smooth  road  brought  them  to  the  fort,  where  they  found  the 

281 


282  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

garrison,  consisting  of  five  companies  of  the  Fifth  Cavalry, 
under  the  command  of  General  Carr,  out  on  parade  awaiting 
their  arrival.  The  band  played  some  martial  music,  and  the 
cavalry  passed  very  handsomely  in  review  before  General 
Sheridan.  The  guests  were  then  most  hospitably  received,, 
and  assigned  to  comfortable  quarters. 

Lieutenant  Hayes,  the  quartermaster  of  tne  expedition, 
arranged  everything  for  the  comfort  of  the  party.  One 
hundred  cavalry  under  command  of  Major  Brown  were 
detailed  as  an  escort,  A  train  of  sixteen  wagons  was  pro- 
vided to  carry  the  baggage,  supplies,  and  forage  for  the 
trip  ;  and,  besides  these,  there  were  three  four-horse  ambu- 
lances in  which  the  guns  were  carried,  and  in  which  mem- 
bers of  the  party  who  became  weary  of  the  saddle  might 
ride  and  rest.  At  General  Sheridan's  requebt  I  was  to 
accompany  the  expedition;  he  introduced  me  to  all  his 
friends,  and  gave  me  a  good  send-off. 

During  the  afternoon  and  evening  the  gentlemen  were  all 
entertained  at  the  post  in  a  variety  of  ways,  including  dinner 
and  supper  parties,  and  music  and  dancing;  at  a  late  hour 
they  retired  to  rest  in  their  tents  at  the  camp  which  they 
occupied  outside  the  post — named  Camp  Huckerin  honor  of 
General  Rucker. 

At  five  o'clock  next  morning  a  cavalry  bugle  sounded  the 
reveille,  and  soon  all  were  astir  in  the  camp,  preparatory  to 
pulling  out  for  the  first  day's  march.  I  rose  fresh  and  eager 
for  the  trip,  and  as  it  was  a  nobby  and  hi<>jh-toned  outfit 
which  I  was  to  accompany,  I  determined  to  put  on  a  little 
style  myself.  So  I  dressed  in  a  new  suit  of  light  buckskin, 
trimmed  along  the  seams  with  fringes  of  the  same  material ; 
and  I  put  on  a  crimson  shirt  handsomely  ornamented  on  the 
bosom,  while  on  my  head  I  wore  a  broad  sombrero.  Then 
mounting  a  snowy  white  horse — a  gallant  stepper — I  rode 
down  from  the  fort  to  the  camp,  rifle  in  hand.  I  felt  first- 
rate  that*  morning,  and  looked  well. 

The  expedition  was  soon  under  way.     Our  road  for  ten 


GEN'L.  SHERIDAN'S  EXCURSION.  285 

miles  wound  through  a  wooded  ravine  called  Cottonwood 
Canon,  intersecting  the  high  ground,  or  divide,  as  it  is. 
called,  between  the  Platte  and  Republican  Rivers.  Upon 
emerging  from  the  canon  we  found  ourselves  upon  the 
plains.  First  in  the  line  rode  General  Sheridan,  followed 
by  his  guests,  and  then  the  orderlies.  Then  came  the  am- 
bulances, in  one  of  which  were  carried  five  greyhounds,, 
brought  along  to  course  the  antelope  and  rabbit.  With  the 
ambulances  marched  a  pair  of  Indian  ponies  belonging  to» 
Lieutenant  Hayes — captured  during  some  Indian  fight — and 
harnessed  to  a  light  wagon,  which  General  Sheridan  occa- 
sionally used.  These  little  horses,  but  thirteen  hands  high., 
showed  more  vigor  and  endurance  than  any  other  of  the  ani- 
mals we  had  with  us.  Following  the  ambulances  came  the 
main  body  of  the  escort  and  the  supply  wagons. 

We  marched  seventeen  miles  the  first  day,  and  went  into* 
camp  on  Fox  Creek,  a  tributary  of  the  Republican.  No 
hunting  had  as  yet  been  done  ;  but  I  informed  the  gentle- 
men of  the  party  that  we  would  strike  the  buffalo  country 
the  next  day.  A  hundred  or  more  questions  were  then 
asked  me  by  this  one  and  that  one,  and  the  whole  evening' 
was  spent  principally  in  buffalo  talk,  sandwiched  with  stories 
of  the  plains — both  of  war  and  of  the  chase.  Several  of  the 
party,  who  were  good  vocalists,  gave  us  some  excellent 
music.  We  closed  the  evening  by  christening  the  camp, 
naming  it  Camp  Brown,  in  honor  of  the  gallant  officer 
in  command  of  the  escort. 

At  three  o'clock  next  morning  the  bugle  called  us  to  an 
early  start.  We  had  breakfast  at  half-past  four,  and  at  six 
were  in  the  saddle.  All  were  eager  to  see  and  shoot  the 
buffaloes,  which  I  assured  them  we  would  certainly  meet 
during  the  day.  After  marching  five  miles,  the  advance 
guard,  of  which  I  had  the  command,  discovered  six  buffaloes 
grazing  at  a  distance  of  about  two  miles  from  us.  We  re- 
turned to  the  hunters  with  this  information,  and  they  at  once 
consulted  with  me  as  to  the  best  way  to  attack  the  "  enemy ." 


284  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

Acting  upon  my  suggestions,  Fitzlmgli,  Crosby,  Lawrence 
Jerome,  Livingston,  Ilecksher  and  Hogers,  accompanied  by 
myself  as  guide,  rode  through  a  convenient  cailon  to  a  point 
beyond  the  buffaloes,  so  that  we  were  to  the  windward  of 
the  animals.  The  rest  of  the  party  made  a  detour  of  nearly 
five  miles,  keeping  behind  the  crest  of  a  hill.  "V\re  charged 
<lowrn  upon  the  buffaloes,  at  full  gallop,  and  just  then  the 
•other  party  emerged  from  their  concealment  and  wit- 
nessed the  exciting  chase.  The  buffaloes  started  off  in  a 
line,  single  file.  Fitzhugh,  after  a  lively  gallop,  led  us  all 
.and  soon  came  alongside  the  rear  buffalo,  at  which  he  fired. 
The  animal  faltered,  and  then  with  another  shot  Fitzhugh 
brought  him  to  the  ground.  Crosby  dashed  by  him  and 
leveled  another  of  the  herd,  while  Livingston  dropped  a 
third.  Those  who  were  not  directly  engaged  in  the  hunt 
now  came  up  and  congratulated  the  men  upon  their  success, 
and  Fitzhngh  was  at  once  hailed  as  the  winner  of  the  buffalo 
cup ;  while  all  sympathized  with  Ilecksher,  whose  chance 
had  been  the  best  at  the  start,  but  who  lost  by  reason  of  his 
horse  falling  and  rolling  over  him. 

The  hunt  being  over,  the  column  moved  forward  on  its 
inarch  passing  through  a  prairie-dog  town,  several  miles  in 
extent.  These  animals  are  found  throughout  the  plains, 
living  together  in  a  sort  of  society  ;  their  numberless  bur- 
rows in  their  "  towns  "  adjoin  each  other,  so  that  great  care  is 
necessary  in  riding  through  these  places,  as  the  ground  is  so 
undermined  as  often  to  fall  in  under  the  weight  of  a  horse. 
Around  the  entrance  to  their  holes  the  ground  is  piled  up 
almost  a  foot  high;  on  these  little  elevations  the  prairie- 
doirs  sit  upon  their  hind  legs,  chattering  to  each  other  and 
observing  whatever  passes  on  the  plains.  They  will  permit 
a  person  to  approach  quite  near,  but  when  they  have  viewed 
him  closely,  they  dive  into  their  dens  with  wonderful  quick- 
ness. They  are  difficult  to  kill,  and  if  hit,  generally  succeed 
in  crawling  underground  before  they  can  be  captured. 
Rattlesnakes  and  small  owls  are  generally  found  in  great 


FIVE  PIONEERS. 


£85 


numbers  in  the  prairie-dog  towns,  and  live  in  the  same  holes 
•with  the  dogs  on  friendly  terms.  A  few  of  the  prairie-dogs 
were  killed,  and  w  ere  ___^_ 

found   to   be    very    pala- 
table eating. 

A  short  distance 
beyond  the  dog  town  we 
•discovered  a  settlement 
of  five  white  men,  who 
proved  to  be  the  two 
Clifford  brothers,  Arthur 
Buff,  Dick  Seymour  and 
John  Nelson — the  latter 
already  referred  t  o  i  n 
these  pages.  Each  of 
them  had  a  squaw  wife 
and  numerous  half-breed 
children,  living  in  tents 
of  buffalo  skins.  They 
owned  a  herd  of  horses 
and  mules  and  a  few 
cattle,  and  had  cultivated 
a  small  piece  of  land.  Their  principal  occupation  was  hunt- 
ing, and  they  had  a  large  number  of  buffalo  hides,  which 
they  had  tanned  in  the  Indian  manner. 

Upon  reaching  Pleasant  Yalley,  on  Medicine  Creek,  our 
party  divided  into  two  detachments — one  hunting  along 
the  bank  of  the  stream  for  elk  or  deer,  and  the  other 
remaining  with  the  main  body  of  the  escort.  The  elk 
hunters  met  with  no  success  whatever,  but  the  others  ran 
across  plenty  of  buffaloes,  and  nearly  everybody  killed  one 
or  more  before  the  day  was  over.  Lawrence  Jerome  made 
an  excellent  shot ;  while  riding  in  an  ambulance  he  killed  a 
L.uffalo  which  attempted  to  cross  the  line  of  march. 

At  about  four  o'clock  p.  M.,  we  arrived  at  Mitchell's  Fork 
of  the  Medicine,  having  traveled  thirty-five  miles  during 
17 


PRAIRIE-DOG    VILLAGE. 


286  L!FE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

that  day,  and  there  we  went  into  camp — calling  it  Camp 
Jack  Hayes,  in  honor  of  Lieutenant  Hayes. 

On  the  next  morning,  the  25th,  we  moved  out  of  camp  at 
eight  o'clock.  The  party  was  very  successful  through  the 
day  in  securing  game,  Hecksher,  Fitzhugh,  Livingston  and 
Lieutenant  Hayes ;  arid  in  fact  all  did  good  shooting. 

Lawrence  Jerome  persuaded  me  to  let  him  ride  Buckskin 
Joe,  the  best  buffalo  horse  in  the  whole  outfit,  and  on  his  back 
he  did  wonders  among  the  buffaloes.  Leonard  Jerome,  Ben- 
nett and  Rogers  also  were  very  successful  in  buffalo  hunting. 

Our  camp  of  this  night  was  named  Camp  Asch  to  com- 
memorate our  surgeon,  Dr.  Asch.  The  evening  was  pleas- 
antly spent  around  the  camp  fires  in  relating  the  adventures 
of  the  day. 

Upon  crossing  the  Republican  river  on  the  morning  of  the 
26th,  we  came  upon  an  immense  number  of  buffaloes  scat- 
tered over  the  country  in  every  direction,  as  far  as  the  eye 
could  reach  and  all  had  an  opportunity  to  do  as  much  hunt- 
ing as  they  wished.  The  wagons  and  troops  moved  slowly 
along  in  the  direction  of  the  next  camp,  while  the  hunters 
went  off  separately,  or  by  twos  and  threes,  in  different 
directions,  and  all  were  rewarded  with  abundant  success. 
Lawrence  Jerome,  however,  had  his  career  suddenly  checked. 
He  had  dismounted  to  make  a  steady  and  careful  shot,  and 
thoughtlessly  let  go  of  the  bridle.  The  buffalo  failing  to 
take  a  tumble,  as  he  ought  to  have  done,  started  off  at  a 
lively  gait,  followed  by  Buckskin  Joe — the  horse  being  de- 
termined to  do  some  hunting  on  his  own  account  —  the 
last  seen  of  him,  he  was  a  little  ahead  of  the  buffalo,  and 
gaining  slightly  ,  leaving  his  late  rider  to  his  own  reflections 
and  the  prospect  of  a  tramp  ;  his  desolate  condition  was  soon 
discovered  and  another  horse  warranted  not  to  run  under  any 
provocation,  was  sent  to  him.  It  may  be  stated  here  that 
three  days  afterwards,  as  I  subsequently  learned,  Buckskin 
Joe,  all  saddled  and  bridled,  turned  up  at  Fort  McPherson. 

We  pitched  our  tents  for  the  night  in  a  charming  spot  on 


A  FIRST  CLASS  DINNER.  287 

the  bank  of  Beaver  Creek.  The  game  was  so  abundant  that 
we  remained  there  one  day.  This  stopping  place  was  called 
Camp  Cody,  in  honor  of  the  reader's  humble  servant. 

The  next  day  was  spent  in  hunting  jack-rabbits,  coyotes, 
elks,  antelopes  and  wild  turkeys.  We  had  a  splendid  dinner 
as  will  be  seen  from  the  following 

BILL  OF  FAKE. 

SOUP. 
Buffalo  Tail. 

FISH. 
Cisco  broiled,  fried  Dace. 

ENTREES. 

Salmi  of  Prairie  Dog,  Stewed  Rabbit,  Fillet  of  Buffalo, 
Aux  Champignons. 

ROAST. 
Elk,  Antelope,  Black-tailed  Deer,  Wild  Turkey. 

BROILED. 

Teal,  Mallard,  Antelope  Chops,  Buffalo-Calf  Steaks, 
Young  Wild  Turkey. 

VEGETABLES. 
Sweet  Potatoes,  Mashed  Potatoes,  Green  Peas. 

DESSERT. 
Tapioca  Pudding. 

WINES. 

Champagne  Frappe,  Champagne  au  Naturel,  Claret, 
Whiskey,  Brandy,  Bass'  Ale. 

COFFEE. 

This  I  considered  a  pretty  square  meal  for  a  party  of 
hunters,  and  everybody  did  ample  justice  to  it. 

In  the  evening  a  court-martial  was  held,  at  which  I  pre- 
sided as  chief  justice.  We  tried  one  of  the  gentlemen  for 
aiding  and  abetting  in  the  loss  of  a  government  horse,  and 
for  having  something  to  do  with  the  mysterious  disappear- 
ance of  a  Colt's  pistol.  He  was  charged  also  with  snoring 
in  a  manner  that  was  regarded  as  fiendish,  and  with  commit- 
ting a  variety  of  other  less  offenses  too  numerous  to  men- 
tion. 

The  accused  made  a  feeble  defense  as  to  the   pistol,  and 


288  L1FE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

claimed  that  instead  of  losing  a  government  horse,  the  fact 
was  that  the  horse  had  lost  him.  His  statements  were  all 
regarded  as  "  too  thin,"  and  finally  failing  to  prove  good 
character,  he  confessed  all,  and  threw  himself  upon  the 
mercy  of  the  court.  The  culprit  was  Lawrence  Jerome. 

As  chief  justice  I  delivered  the  opinion  of  the  court, 
which  my  modesty  does  not  prevent  me  from  saying,  was 
done  in  an  able  and  dignified  manner ;  as  an  act  of  clemency 
I  suspended  judgment  for  the  time  being,  remarking  that 
while  the  camp  fire  held  out  to  burn,  the  vilest  sinner  might 
return ;  and  in  hope  of  the  accused's  amendment,  1  would 
defer  pronouncing  sentence.  The  trial  afforded  us  con- 
siderable amusement,  and  gave  me  a  splendid  opportunity 
to  display  the  legal  knowledge  which  I  had  acquired  while 
acting  as  justice  of  the  peace  at  Fort  McPherson. 

On  the  morning  of  the  28th  the  command  crossed  the 
South  Beaver,  distant  nine  miles  from  Camp  Cody,  and 
then  striking  a  fair  road  we  made  a  rapid  march  until  we 
reached  our  camp  on  Short  Nose  or  Prairie  Dog  Creek, 
about  2  P.  M.,  after  having  made  twenty-four  miles.  The 
remainder  of  the  afternoon  was  spent  in  hunting  buffaloes 
and  turkeys.  Camp  Stager  was  the  name  given  to  this 
place,  in  honor  of  General  Stager,  of  the  Western  Union 
Telegraph  Company. 

The  next  day  we  made  a  march  of  twenty-four  miles,  and 
then  halted  at  about  1  r.  M.  on  the  North  Solomon  River. 
This  day  we  killed  three  buffaloes,  two  antelopes,  two  rac- 
coons, and  three  teal  ducks.  Near  our  camp,  which  we 
named  Camp  Leonard  Jerome,  was  a  beaver  dam  some  six 
feet  high  and  twenty  yards  wide  ;  it  was  near  the  junction 
of  two  streams,  and  formed  a  pond  of  at  least  four  acres. 

On  the  30th  we  traveled  twenty-five  miles,  and  during  the 
march  nine  turkeys,  two  rabbits,  and  three  or  four  buffaloes 
were  killed.  We  went  into  camp  on  the  bank  of  the  South 
Fork  of  the  Solomon  River,  and  called  the  place  Camp  Sam 
Johnson.  We  were  now  but  forty -five  miles  from  Fort 


THE  WIND  UP.  289 

Hays,  the  point  at  which  General  Sheridan  and  his  guests 
expected  to  strike  the  Kansas  Pacific  Railway,  and- thence 
return  home.  That  evening  1  volunteered  to  ride  to  Fort 
Hays  and  meet  the  party  next  day,  bringing  w^ith  me  all  the 
letters  that  might  be  at  the  post.  Taking  the  best  horse  in 
the  command  I  started  out,  expecting  to  make  the  trip  in 
about  four  hours. 

The  next  morning  the  command  got  an  early  start  and 
traveled  thirty  miles  to  Saline  River,  where  they  made 
their  la?t  camp  on  the  plains.  As  some  of  the  party  were 
attacking  a  herd  of  buffaloes,  I  rode  in  from  Fort  Hays  and 
got  into  the  middle  of  the  herd,  and  killed  a  buffalo  or  two 
before  the  hunters  observed  me.  I  brought  a  large  number 
of  letters,  which  proved  welcome  reading  matter. 

In  the  evening  we  gathered  around  the  camp-fire  for  the 
last  time.  The  duty  of  naming  the  camp,  which  was  called 
Camp  Davies,  having  been  duly  performed,  we  all  united  in 
making  that  night  the  pleasantest  of  all  that  WQ  had  spent 
together.  We  had  eloquent  speeches,  songs,  and  interesting 
anecdotes.  I  was  called  upon,  and  entertained  the  gentle- 
men with  some  lively  Indian  stories. 

The  excursionists  reached  Fort  Hays,  distant  fifteen  miles, 
on  the  morning  of  October  2d,  where  we  pitched  our  tents 
for  the  last  time,  and  named  the  camp  in  honor  of  Mr. 
Hecksher.  That  same  afternoon  General  Sheridan  and  his 
guests  took  the  train  for  the  East,  after  bidding  Major 
Brown,  Lieutenant  Hayes  and  myself,  a  hearty  good-bye, 
and  expressing  themselves  as  greatly  pleased  with  their 
hunt,  and  the  manner  in  which  they  had  been  escorted  and 
guided. 

It  will  be  proper  and  fair  to  state  here  that  General 
Davies  afterwards  wrote  an  interesting  account  of  this  hunt 
and  published  it  in  a  neat  volume  of  sixty-eight  pages,  under 
the  title  of  "Ten  Days  on  the  Plains."  I  would  have  in- 
serted the  volume  bodily  in  this  book,  were  it  not  for  the 
fact  that  the  General  has  spoken  in  a  rather  too  compli- 


290  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

mentary  manner  of  me.  However,  I  have  taken  the  liberty 
in  this  chapter  to  condense  from  the  little  volume,  and  in 
some  places  I  have  used  the  identical  language  of  General 
Davies  without  quoting  the  same  ;  in  fact,  to  do  the  Gen- 
eral justice,  I  ought  to  close  this  chapter  with  several  lines 
of  quotation  marks  to  be  pretty  generally  distributed  by  the 
reader  throughout  my  account  of  our  ten  clays'  hunt. 

Soon  after  the  departure  of  General  Sheridan's  party,  we 
returned  to  Fort  McPherson  and  found  General  Carr  about  to 
start  out  on  a  twenty  days'  scout,  not  so  much  for  the  purpose 
of  finding  Indians,  but  more  for  the  object  of  taking  some 
friends  on  a  hunt.  His  guests  \vere  a  couple  of  Englishmen, 
— whose  names  I  cannot  now  remember — and  Mr.  Mc- 
Carthy, of  Syracuse,  New  York,  who  was  a  relative  of  Gen- 
eral Emory.  The  command  consisted  of  three  companies  of 
the  Fifth  Cavalry,  one  company  of  Pawnee  Indians,  and 
twenty -five  wagons.  Of  course  I  was  called  on  to  accompany 
the  expedition. 

One  day,  after  wo  had  been  out  from  the  post  for  some 
little  time,  I  was  hunting  on  Deer  Creek,  in  company  with 
Mr.  McCarthy,  about  eight  miles  from  the  command.  I  had 
been  wishing  for  several  days  to  play  a  joke  on  him,  and 
had  arranged  a  plan  with  Captain  Lute  North  to  carry  it 
into  execution.  I  had  informed  North  at  about  what  time 
we  would  be  on  Deer  Creek,  and  it  was  agreed  that  he 
should  appear  in  the  vicinity  with  some  of  his  Pawnees,  who 
were  to  throw  their  blankets  around  them,  and  come  dashing 
down  upon  us,  firing  and  whooping  in  true  Indian  style ; 
while  he  was  to  either  conceal  or  disguise  himself.  This 
programme  was  faithfully  and  completely  carried  out.  I  had 
been  talking  about  Indians  to  McCarthy,  and  he  had  become 
considerably  excited,  when  just  as  we  turned  a  bend  of  the 
creek,  we  saw  not  half  a  mile  from  us  about  twenty  Indians, 
who  instantly  started  for  us  on  a  gallop,  firing  their  guns 
and  yelling  at  the  top  of  their  voices. 

"  McCarthy,  shall  we  dismount  and  fight,  or  run  ? "  said  I. 


A  JOKE  ON  MCCARTHY. 


291 


He  didn't  wait  to  reply,  but  wheeling  his  horse,  started 
at  full  speed  down  the  creek,  losing  his  hat  and  dropping  his 
gun;  away  he  went,  never  once  looking  back  to  see  if  he  was 
being  pursued.  1  tried  to  stop  him  by  yelling  at  him  and 
saying  that  it  was  all  right,  as  the  Indians  were  Pawnees. 
Unfortunately  he  did  not  hear  me,  but  kept  straight  on,  not 
stopping  his  horse  until  he  reached  the  camp. 

I  knew  that  he  would  tell  General  Carr  that  the  Indians 


MCCARTHY  S    FRIGHT. 


had  jumped  him,  and  that  the  General  would  soon  start  out 
with  the  troops.  So  as  soon  as  the  Pawnees  rode  up  to 
me  I  told  them  to  remain  there  while  I  went  after  my 
friend.  I  rode  after  him  as  fast  as  possible,  but  he  had 
arrived  at  the  command  some  time  before  me  and  when  I 
got  there  the  General  had,  as  I  had  suspected  he  would  do, 
ordered  out  two  companies  of  cavalry  to  go  in  pursuit  of  the 
Indians.  I  told  the  General  that  the  Indians  were  only 
some  Pawnees,  who  had  been  out  hunting  and  that  they 
had  merely  played  a  joke  upon  us.  I  forgot  to  inform  him 


292  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

that  I  had  put  up  the  trick,  but  as  he  was  always  fond  of  a 
good  joke  himself,  he  did  not  get  very  angry.  I  had  picked 
up  McCarthy's  hat  and  gun  which  I  returned  to  him,  and  it 
was  some  time  afterwards  before  he  discovered  who  was  at 
the  bottom  of  the  affair. 

When  we  returned  to  Fort  McPherson  we  found  there 
Mr.  Royal  Buck,  whose  father  had  been  killed  with  his. 
entire  party  by  Pawnee  Killer's  band  of  Indians  on  the  Bea- 
ver Creek.  He  had  a  letter  from  the  commanding  officer  of 
the  Department  requesting  that  lie  be  furnished  with  an 
escort  to  go  in  search  of  the  remains  of  his  father  and  the 
party.  Two  companies  of  cavalry  were  sent  with  him  and 
I  accompanied  them  as  givide.  As  the  old  squaw,  which  we 
had  captured,  and  of  which  mention  is  made  in  a  previous 
chapter,  could  not  exactly  tell  us  the  place  on  Beaver  Creek 
where  the  party  had  been  killed,  we  searched  the  country 
over  for  two  days  and  discovered  no  signs  of  the  murdered 
men.  At  last,  however,  our  efforts  were  rewarded  with 
success.  We  found  pieces  of  their  wagons  and  among- 
other  things  an  old  letter  or  two  which  Mr.  Buck  recognized 
as  his  father's  handwriting.  We  then  discovered  some  of 
the  remains,  which  we  buried  ;  but  nothing  further.  It  was 
now  getting  late  in  the  fall  and  we  accordingly  returned  to 
Fort  McPherson. 

A  short  time  after  this  the  Fifth  Cavalry  was  ordered  to- 
Arizona,  a  not  very  desirable  country  to  soldier  in.  I  had 
become  greatly  attached  to  the  officers  of  the  regiment, 
having  been  continually  with  them  for  over  three  years,  and 
had  about  made  up  my  mind  to  accompany  them,  when  a 
letter  was  received  from  General  Sheridan  instructing  the 
commanding  officer  "  not  to  take  Cody  "  with  him,  and  saying 
that  I  was  to  remain  in  my  old  position.  In  a  few  days  the 
command  left  for  its  destination,  taking  the  cars  at  McPher- 
son Station,  where  I  bade  my  old  friends  adieu.  During 
the  next  few  weeks  I  had  but  little  to  do,  as  the  post  was 
garrisoned  by  infantry,  awaiting  the  arrival  of  the  Third 
Cavalry. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

HUNTING   WITH    A    GRAND    DUKE. 

ABOUT  the  first  of  January,  1872,  General  Forsyth  and 
Dr.  Asch,  of  Sheridan's  staff  came  out  to  Fort  McPher- 
st>n  to  make  preparations  for  a  big  buffalo  hunt  for  the 
Grand  Duke  Alexis,  of  Russia  ;  and  as  this  was  to  be  no- 
ordinary  affair,  these  officers  had  been  sent  by  General  Sheri- 
dan to  have  all  the  necessary  arrangements  perfected  by  the 
time  the  Grand  Duke  should  arrive.  They  learned  from  me 
that  there  were  plenty  of  buffaloes  in  the  vicinity  and  espe- 
cially on  the  Red  Willow,  sixty  miles  distant.  They  said 
they  would  like  to  go  over  on  the  Red  "Willow  and  pick  out  a 
suitable  place  for  the  camp ;  they  also  inquired  the  location 
of  the  Spotted  Tail,  Sioux  Indians.  Spotted  Tail  had  per- 
mission from  the  Government  to4  hunt1  the  buffalo,  with  his- 
people  during  the  winter,  in  the  Republican  river  country. 
It  was  my  opinion  that  they  were  located  somewhere  on  the 
Frenchman's  Fork  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles  from. 
Fort  McPherson. 

General  Sheridan's  commissioners  informed  me,  that  he 
wished  me  to  visit  Spotted  Tail's  camp,  and  induce  about  one 
hundred  of  the  leading  warriors  and  chiefs,  to  come  to  the 
point  where  it  should  be  decided  to  locate  the  Alexis  hunt- 
ing camp,  and  to  be  there  by  the  time  the  Grand  Duke 
should  arrive,  so  that  he  could  see  a  body  of  American 

295 


296  *'IFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

Indians  and  observe  the  manner  in  which  they  killed  buf- 
faloes. The  Indians  would  also  be  called  upon  to  give  a 
grand  war  cfance  in  honor  of  the  distinguished  visitor. 

Next  morning  General  Forsyth  and  Dr.  Asch,  accompa- 
nied by  Captain  Hays,  who  had  been  left  at  Fort  McPher- 
.son  in  charge  of  the  Fifth  Cavalry  horses,  taking  an  ambu- 
lance and  a  light  wagon,  to  carry  their  tents,  and  provisions 
.sufficient  to  last  them  two  or  three  days;  started,  under  m/ 
guidance,  with  a  small  escort,  for  Red  Willow  Creek,  arriv- 
ing there  at  night.  The  next  day  we  selected  a  pleasant 
camping  place  on  a  little  knoll  in  the  valley  of  the  Red  Wil- 
low. General  Forsyth  and  his  party  returned  to  the  post 
-the  next  day  while  I  left  for  Spotted  Tail's  camp. 

The  weather  was  very  cold  and  I  found  my  journey  by 
no  means  a  pleasant  one  as  I  was  obliged  to  camp  out  with 
only  my  saddle  blankets;  and  besides,  there  was  more  or 
less  danger  from  the  Indians  themselves  ;  for,  although  Spot- 
ted Tail  himself  was  friendly,  I  was  afraid  I  plight  have  dif- 
ficulty in  getting  into  his  camp.  I  was  liable  at  any  moment 
to  run  into  a  party  of  his  young  men  who  might  be  out  hunt- 
ing, and  as  I  had  many  enemies  among  the  Sioux,  I  would 
be  running  considerable  risk  in  meeting  them. 

At  the  end  of  the  first  day  I  camped  on  Stinking  Water, 
a  tributary  of  the  Frenchman's  Fork,  where  I  built  a  little 
iire  in  the  timber;  but  it  was  so  very  cold  I  was  not  able 
to  sleep  much.  Getting  an  early  start  in  the  morning  I  fol- 
lowed up  the  Frenchman's  Fork  and  late  in  the  afternoon  I 
could  see,  from  the  fresh  horse  tracks  and  from  the  dead 
buffaloes  lying  here  and  there,  recently  killed,  that  I  was  near- 
ing  Spotted  Tail's  camp.  I  rode  on  for  a  few  miles  further, 
and  then  hiding  my  horse  in  a  low  ravine,  I  crawled  up  a 
high  hill,  where  I  obtained  a  good  view  of  the  country.  I 
could  pee  for  four  or  five  miles  up  the  creek,  and  got  sight 
of  a  village  and  of  two  or  three  hundred  ponies  in  its 
vicinity.  I  waited  until  night  came  and  then  I  succeeded  in 
riding  into  the  Indian  camp  unobserved. 


A  NIGHT  VISIT  TO  AN  INDIAN  CAMP. 


297 


I  had  seen  Spotted  Tail's  camp  when  he  came  from  the 
north  and  I  knew  the  kind  of  lodge  he  was  living  in.  As  I 
entered  the  village  I  wrapped  a  blanket  around  my  head  so 
that  the  Indians  could,  not  tell  whether  I  was  a  white  or  a 
red  man.  In  this  way  I  rode  around  until  I  found  Spotted 
Tail's  lodge.  Dismounting  from  my  horse  1  opened  his 
tent  door  and  looked  in  and  saw  the  old  chief  lying  on  some 
robes.  I  spoke  to  him  and  he  recognized  me  at  once  and 
invited  me  to  enter.  Inside  the  lodge  1  found  a  white 
man,  an  old  frontiersman,  Todd  Randall,  who  was  Spotted 


SPOTTED    TAIL. 


Tail's  agent  and  who  had  lived  a  great  many  years  with  the 
Indians.  He  understood  their  language  perfectly  and  did  all 
the  interpreting  for  Spotted  Tail.  Through  him  I  readily 
communicated  with  the  chief  and  informed  him  of  my 
errand.  I  told  him  that  the  warriors  and  chiefs  would 
greatly  please  General  Sheridan  if  they  would  meet  him  in 
about  ten  sleeps  at  the  old  Government  crossing  of  the  Red 
AVillow.  I  further  informed  him  that  there  was  a  great 
chief  from  across  the  water  who  was  coming  there  to  visit  him. 


298  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

Spotted  Tail  replied  that  lie  would  be  very  glad  to  go  ; 
that  the  next  morning  lie  would  call  his  people  together  and 
select  those  who  would  accompany  him.  I  told  Spotted 
Tail  how  I  had  entered  his  camp.  lie  replied  that  I  had 
acted  wisely ;  that  although  his  people  were  friendly,  yet 
some  of  his  young  men  had  a  grudge  against  me,  and  I 
might  have  had  difficulty  with  them  had  I  met  them  away 
from  the  village.  He  directed  his  squaw  to  get  me  some- 
thing to  eat,  and  ordered  that  my  horse  be  taken  care  of,, 
and  upon  his  invitation  I  spent  the  remainder  of  the  night 
in  his  lodge. 

Next  morning  the  chiefs  and  warriors  assembled  according 
to  orders,  and  to  them  was  stated  the  object  of  my  visit. 
They  were  asked  : 

"Do  you  know  who  this  man  is ?  " 

"Yes,  we  know  him  well,"  replied  one,  "that  is  Pa-he- 
haska,"  (that  being  my  name  among  the  Sioux,  which  trans- 
lated means  "Long  Hair'')  "that  is  our  old  enemy,"  a 
great  many  of  the-  Indians,  who  were  with  Spotted  Tail  at 
this  time,  had  been  driven  out  of  the  Republican  country. 

"That  is  he,"  said  Spotted  Tail.  "  I  want  all  my  people 
to  be  kind  to  him  and  treat  him  as  iny  friend." 

I  noticed  that  several  of  them  were  looking  daggers  at  me. 
They  appeared  as  if  they  wished  to  raise  my  hair  then 
and  there.  Spotted  Tail  motioned  and  I  followed  him  into 
his  lodge,  and  thereupon  the  Indians  dispersed.  Having  the 
assurance  of  Spotted  Tail  that  none  of  the  young  men  would 
follow  me  I  started  back  for  the  Red  Willow,  arriving  the 
second  night. 

There  I  found  Captain  Egan  with  a  company  of  the  Sec- 
ond Cavalry  and  a  wagon  train  loaded  with  tents,  grain, 
provisions,  etc.  The  men  were  leveling  off  the  ground  and 
were  making  preparations  to  put  up  large  wall  tents  for  the 
Grand  Duke  Alexis  and  his  suite,  and  for  General  Sheridan, 
his  staff  and  other  officers,  and  invited  guests  of  the  party. 
Proceeding  to  Fort  McPherson  I  reported  what  had  been 


ARRIVAL  OF  THE  GRAND  DUKE  ALEXIS.  299 

done.  Thereupon  Quartermaster  Hays  selected  from  the 
five  or  six  hundred  horses  in  his  charge,  seventy-five  of  the 
very  best,  which  were  sent  to  the  Red  Willow,  to  be  used  by 
Alexis  and  his  party  at  the  coming  hunt.  In  a  day  or  two 
a  large  supply  of  provisions,  liquors,  etc.,  arrived  from  Chi- 
cago, together  with  bedding  and  furniture  for  the  tents; 
all  of  which  were  sent  over  to  Camp  Alexis. 

At  last,  on  the 
morning  of  the 
12th  of  January, 
1872,  the  Grand 
Duke  and  party 
arrived  at  ISIorth 
Platte  by  special 
train  ;  in  charge  of 
a  Mr.  Francis 
Thompson.  Cap- 
tain Hays  and 
myself,  with  five 
or  six  ambulances,: 
fifteen  o  r  twenty 
extra  saddle-horse? 
and  a  company  o1j 
cavalry  under' 
Captain  Egan,  were 
at  the  depot  in  time  to  receive  them.  Presently  General 
Sheridan  and  a  large,  fine-looking  young  man,  whom  we  at 
once  concluded  to  be  the  Grand  Duke  came  out  of  the  cars 
and  approached  us.  General  Sheridan  at  once  introduced  me 
to  the  Grand  Duke  as  Buffalo  Bill,  for  he  it  was,  and  said 
that  I  was  to  take  charge  of  him  and  show  him  how  to  kill 
buffalo. 

In  less  than  half  an  hour  the  whole  party  were  dashing 
away  towards  the  south,  across  the  South  Platte  and  towards 
the  Medicine;  upon  reaching  which  point  we  halted  fora 
change  of  horses  and  a  lunch.  Resuming  our  ride  we  reached' 


GRAND    DUKE    AI.KX.S. 


300 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


Camp  Alexis  in  the  afternoon.  General  Sheridan  was 
well  pleased  with  the  arrangements  that  had  been  made  and 
was  delighted  to  find  that  Spotted  Tail  and  his  Indians  had 
arrived  on  time.  They  were  objects  of  great  curiosity  to. the 
Grand  Duke,  who  spent  considerable  time  in  looking  at  them, 
and  watching  their  exhibitions  of  horsemanship,  sham  lights, 
etc.  That  evening  the  Indians  gave  the  grand  war  dance, 
which  I  had  arranged  for. 


INDIAN    EXERCISES. 


General  Ouster,  who  was  one  of  the  hunting  party,  carried 
on  a  mild  flirtation  with  one  of  Spotted  Tail's  daughters, 
who  had  accompanied  her  father  thither,  and  it  was  noticed 
also  that  the  Duke  Alexis  paid  considerable  attention  to  an- 
other handsome  red-skin  maiden.  The  night  passed  pleas- 
antly, and  all  retired  with  great  expectations  of  having  a 
most  enjoyable  and  successful  buffalo  hunt.  The  Duke 
Alexis  asked  me  a  great  many  questions  as  to  how  we  shot 
buffaloes,  and  what  kind  of  a  gun  or  pistol  we  used,  and  if 


ALEXIS  KILLS  THE  FIRST  BUFFALO.  301 

he  was  going  to  have  a  good  horse.  I  told  him  that  he  was 
to  have  my  celebrated  buffalo  horse  Buckskin  Joe,  and  when 
we  went  into  a  buffalo  herd  all  he  would  have  to  do  was  to- 
sit  on  the  horse's  back  and  fire  away. 

At  nine  o'clock  next  morning  we  were  all  in  our  saddles,, 
and  in  a  few  minutes  were  galloping  over  the  prairies  in 
search  of  a  buffalo  herd.  We  had  not  gone  far  before  we 
observed  a  herd  some  distance  ahead  of  us  crossing  our  way  ; 
after  that  we  proceeded  cautiously,  so  as  to  keep  out  of  sight 
until  we  were  ready  to  make  a  charge. 

Of  course  the  main  thing  was  to  give  Alexis  the  first 
chance  and  the  best  shot  at  the  buffaloes,  and  when  all  was- 
in  readiness  we  dashed  over  a  little  knoll  that  had  hidden  us. 
from  View,  and  in  a  few  minutes  we  were  among  them. 
Alexis  at  first  preferred  to  use  his  pistol  instead  of  a  gun. 
He  fired  six  shots  from  this  weapon  at  buffaloes  only  twenty 
feet  away  from  him,  but  as  he  shot  wildly,  not  one  of  hi& 
bullets  took  effect.  Riding  up  to  his  side  and  seeing  that 
his  weapon  was  empty,  I  exchanged  pistols  with  him.  He. 
again  fired  six  shots,  without  dropping  a  buffalo. 

Seeing  that  the  animals  were  bound  to  make  their  escape 
without  his  killing  one  of  them,  unless  he  had  a  better 
weapon,  I  rode  up  to  him,  gave  him  my  old  reliable 
"Lucretia,"  and  told  him  to  urge  his  horse  close  to  the  buff- 
aloes, and  I  would  then  give  him  the  word  when  to  shoot. 
At  the  same  time  I  gave  old  Buckskin  Joe  a  blow  with  my 
whip,  and  with  a  few  jumps  the  horse  carried  the  Grand 
Duke,  to  within  about  ten  feet  of  a  big  buffalo  bull. 

"Now  is  your* time,"  said  I.  He  fired,  and  down  went 
the  buffalo.  The  Grand  Duke  stopped  his  horse,  dropped 
his  gun  on  the  ground,  and  commenced  waving  his  hat. 
When  his  suite  came  galloping  up,  he  began  talking  to  them 
in  a  tongue  which  I  could  not  understand.  Presently  Gen- 
eral Sheridan  joined  the  group,  and  the  ambulances  were 
brought  up.  Very  soon  the  corks  began  to  fly  from  the 
champagne  bottles,  in  honor  of  the  Grand  Duke  Alexis,  who 
had  killed  the  first  buffalo. 


302  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

It  was  reported  in  a  great  many  of  the  newspapers  that  I 
shot  the  first  buffalo  for  Alexis,  while  in  some  it  was  stated 
that  I  held  the  buffalo  while  His  Royal  Highness  killed  it. 
But  the  way  I  have  related  the  affair  is  the  correct  version. 

It  was  thought  that  we  had  had  about  sport  enough  for 
one  day,  and  accordingly  I  was  directed  by  General  Sheridan 
to  guide  the  party  back  to  camp,  and  we  were  soon  on  our 
way  thither.  Several  of  the  party,  however,  concluded  to 
have  a  little  hunt  on  their  own  account,  and  presently  we 
saw  them  galloping  over  the  prairie  in  different  directions 
in  pursuit  of  buffaloes. 

"While  we  were  crossing  a  deep  ravine,  on  our  way  to 
camp,  we  ran  into  a  small  band  of  buffaloes  that  had  been 
frightened  by  some  of  the  hunters.  As  they  rushed  past 
17S,  not  more  than  thirty  yards  distant,  Alexis  raised  his 
pistol,  fired  and  killed  a  buffalo  cow.  It  was  either  an 
•extraordinarly  good  shot  or  a  "  scratch  " — probably  the  lat- 
ter, for  it  surprised  the  Grand  Duke  as  well  as  everybody 
else.  We  gave  him  three  cheers,  and  when  the  ambulance 
came  up  we  took  a  pull  at  the  champagne  in  honor  of  the 
Grand  Duke's  success.  I  was  in  hopes  that  he  would  kill 
five  or  six  more  buffaloes  before  we  reached  camp,  especially 
if  a  basket  of  champagne  was  to  be  opened  every  time  he 
dropped  one. 

General  Sheridan  directed  me  to  take,  care  of  the  hides 
and  heads  of  the  buffaloes  which  Alexis  had  killed,  as  the 
Duke  wished  to  keep  them  as  souvenirs  of  the  hunt.  I  also 
cut  out  the  choice  meat  from  the  cow  and  brought  it  into 
camp,  and  that  night  at  supper  Alexis  had  the  pleasure  of 
dining  on  broiled  buffalo  steak  obtained  from  the  animal 
which  he  had  shot  himself. 

"We  remained  at  this  camp  two  or  three  days,  during 
which  we  hunted  most  of  the  time,  the  Grand  Duke  himself 
lulling  eight  buffaloes. 

One  day  Alexis  desired  to  see  how  the  Indians  hunted 
buffaloes  and  killed  them  with  bow  and  arrow ;  so  Spotted 


THE  END  OF  THE  GREAT  HUNT. 


303 


Tail,  selecting  some  of  his  best  hunters,  had  them  surround 
a  herd,  and  bring  the  animals  down,  not  only  with  arrows, 
but  with  lances.  The  Grand  Duke  was  told  to  follow  upon 
the  heels  of  one  celebrated  Indian  hunter,  whose  name 
was'  "  Two  Lance,"  and  watch  him  bring  down  the  game; 
for  this  chief  had  the  reputation  of  being  able  to  send  an 
arrow  through  and  through  the  body  of  a  buffalo.  Upon 
this  occasion  he  did  not  belie  his  reputation,  for  he  sent  an 


TWO  LANCE  KILLING  A  BUFFALO. 

arrow  through  a  buffalo,  which  fell  dead  at  the  shot,  and  the 
arrow  was  given  to  Alexis  as  a  souvenir  of  his  hunt  on  the 
American  Plains. 

When  the  Grand  Duke  was  satisfied  with  the  sport,  orders 
were  given  for  the  return  to  the  railroad.  The  conveyance 
provided  for  the  Grand  Duke  and  General  Sheridan  was  a 
heavy  double-seated  open  carriage,  or  rather  an  Irish  dog- 
cart, and  it  was  drawn  by  four  spirited  cavalry  horses  which 
18 


304:  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL.  %       . 

were  not  much  used  to  the  harness.  The  driver  was  Bill 
Reed,  an  old  overland  stage  driver  and  wagon  master ;  on 
our  way  in,  the  Grand  Duke  frequently  expressed  his  ad- 
miration of  the  skillful  manner  in  which  Reed  handled  the 
reins. 

General  Sheridan  informed  the  Duke  that  I  also  had  been 
a  stage-driver  in  the  Rocky  Mountains,  and  thereupon  His 
Royal  Highness  expressed  a  desire  to  see  me  drive.  I  was 
in  advance  at  the  time,  and  General  Sheridan  sang  out 
to  me: 

"  Cody,  get  in  here  and  show  the  Duke  how  you  can 
drive.  Mr.  Reed  will  exchange  places  with  you  and  ride 
your  horse." 

"All  right,  General,"  said  I,  and  in  a  few  moments  I  had 
the  reins  and  we  were  rattling  away  over  the  prairie.  When 
we  were  approaching  Medicine  Creek,  General  Sheridan 
said  :  "  Shake  'em  up  a  little,  Bill,  and  give  us  some  old- 
time  stage-driving." 

I  gave  the  horses  a  crack  or  two  of  the  whip,  and  they 
started  off  at  a  very  rapid  gait.  They  had  a  light  load  to- 
pull,  and  kept  increasing  their  speed  at  every  jump,  and  I 
found  it  difficult  to  hold  them.  They  fairly  flew  over  the 
ground,  and  at  last  we  reached  a  steep  hill,  or  divide,  which 
led  down  into  the  valley  of  the  Medicine.  There  was  no 
brake  on  the  wagon,  and  the  horses  were  not  much  on  the 
hold-back.  I  saw  that  it  would  be  impossible  to  stop  them* 
All  I  could  do  was  to  keep  them  straight  in  the  track  and 
let  them  go  it  down  the  hill,  for  three  miles ;  which  dis- 
tance, I  believe,  was  made  in  about  six  minutes.  Every 
once  in  a  while  the  hind  wheels  would  strike  a  rut  and  take 
a  bound,  and  not  touch  the  ground  again  for  fifteen  or 
twenty  feet.  The  Duke  and  the  General  were  kept  rather 
busy  in  holding  their  positions  on  the  seats,  and  when  they 
saw  that  I  was  keeping  the  horses  straight  in  the  road,  they 
seemed  to  enjoy  the  dash  which  we  were  making.  I  was 
unable  to  stop  the  team  until  they  ran  into  the  camp  where 


A  ROYAL  INVITATION.  305 

we  were  to  obtain  a  fresh  relay,  and  there  I  succeeded  in 
checking  them.  The  Grand  Duke  said  he  didn't  want  any 
more  of  that  kind  of  driving,  as  he  preferred  to  go  a  little 
slower. 

On  arriving  at  the  railroad,  the  Duke  invited  me  into  his 
car,  and  made  me  some  valuable  presents,  at  the  same  time 
giving  me  a  cordial  invitation  to  visit  him,  if  ever  I  should 
come  to  his  country. 

General  Sheridan  took  occasion  to  remind  me  of  an  invita- 
tion to  visit  New  York  which  I  had  received  from  some  of 
the  gentlemen  who  accompanied  the  General  on  the  hunt 
from  Fort  McPherson  to  Hays  City,  in  September  of  the 
previous  year.  Said  he : 

"  You  will  never  have  a  better  opportunity  to  accept  that 
invitation  than  now.  I  have  had  a  talk  with  General  Ord 
concerning  you,  and  he  will  give  you  a  leave  of  absence 
whenever  you  are  ready  to  start.  Write  a  letter  to  General 
Stager,  of  Chicago,  that  you  are  now  prepared  to  accept  the 
invitation,  and  he  will  send  you  a  pass." 

Thanking:  the  General  for  his  kindness,  I  then  bade  him 

O  ' 

and  the  Grand  Duke  good-bye,  and  soon  their  train  was  out 
of  sight. 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

BIGHT-SEEING. 

ORD,  commanding  the  Department  of  the 
\.A  Platte  at  the  time,  and  who  had  been  out  on  the  Alexis 
hunt,  had  some  business  to  attend  to  at  Fort  'McPherson, 
and  I  accepted  his  invitation  to  ride  over  to  the  post  with 
him  in  an  ambulance.  On  the  way  thither  he  asked  me 
how  I  would  like  to  have  an  officer's  commission  in  the  reg- 
ular army.  He  said  that  General  Sheridan  and  himself  had 
had  some  conversation  about  the  matter,  and  if  I  wanted  a 
commission,  one  could  easily  be  procured  for  me.  I  thanked 
General  Ord  for  his  kindness,  and  said  that  although  an 
officer's  commission  in  the  regular  army  was  a  tempting 
prize,  yet  I  preferred  to  remain  in  the  position  I  was  then 
holding.  He  concluded  by  stating  that  if  at  any  time  I 
should  wish  a  commission,  all  that  I  would  have  to  do  to 
secure  it  would  be  to  inform  him  of  my  desire. 

Having  determined  to  visit  New  York,  I  acted  upon  Gen- 
eral Sheridan's  suggestion  and  wrote  to  General  Stager, 
from  whom  in  a  few  days  I  received  my  railroad  passes. 
Obtaining  thirty  days'  leave  of  absence  from  the  depart- 
ment, I  struck  out  for  the  East.  On  arriving  in  Chicago,  in 
February,  1872,  I  was  met  at  the  depot  by  Colonel  M.  Y. 
Sheridan,  who  said  that  his  brother,  the  General,  had  not 
yet  returned,  but  had  sent  word  that  I  was  to  be  his  and  the 

306 


IN  CHICAGO. 


307 


Colonel's  guest,  at  their  house,  while  I  remained  in  Chicago. 
I  spent  two  or  three  days  very  pleasantly  in  the  great  city 
of  the  West,  meeting  several  of  the  gentlemen  who  had  been 
out  on  the  Sheridan  hunt  in  September — General  Stager, 
Colonel  Wilson,  editor  of  the  Journal  /  Mr.  Sam  Johnson, 
General  Rucker  and  others — by  all  of  whom  I  was  most  cor- 

"7" 


AN    EMBARRASSING    SITUATION. 

dially  received  and  well  entertained.  I  was  introduced  to 
quite  a  number  of  the  best  people  of  the  city,  and  was 
invited  to  several  "  swell "  dinners.  I  also  accompanied 
General  Sheridan — who  meantime  had  returned  to  the  city 
—to  a  ball  at  Riverside — an  aristocratic  suburb.  On  this 
occasion  I  became  so  embarrassed  that  it  was  more  difficult 
for  me  to  face  the  throng  of  beautiful  ladies,  than  it  would 
have  been  to  confront  a  hundred  hostile  Indians.  This  was 


308  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

my  first  trip  to  the  East,  and  I  had  not  yet  become  accus- 
tomed to  being  stared  at.  And  besides  this,  the  hundreds  of 
questions  which  I  was  called  upon  to  answer  further  embar- 
rassed and  perplexed  me. 

According  to  the  route  laid  out  for  me  by  General  Stager, 
I  was  to  stop  at  Niagara  Falls,  Buffalo  and  Rochester  on  my 
way  to  New  York,  and  he  provided  me  with  all  the  neces- 
sary railroad  passes.  Just  as  I  was  about  to  leave  Chicago 
I  met  Professor  Henry  A.  Ward,  of  Rochester,  for  whom 
during  the  previous  year  or  two  I  had  collected  a  large  num- 
ber of  specimens  of  wild  animals.  He  was  on  his  way  to 
Rochester,  and  kindly  volunteered  to  act  as  my  guide  until 
we  reached  that  point.  We  spent  one  day  in  viewing  the 
wonders  of  Niagara,  and  I  stopped  one  day  at  Rochester  and 
was  shown  the  beauties  of  that  handsome  city  by  Professor 
Ward,  and  I  had  the  honor  of  receiving  an  invitation  to  dine 
with  the  Mayor. 

On  arriving  at  New  York  I  was  met  at  the  depot  by  Mr. 
J.  G.  Hecksher,  who  had  been  appointed  as  "  a  committee 
of  one"  to  escort  me  to  the  Union  Club,  where  James  Gor- 
don Bennett,  Leonard  W.  Jerome  and  others  were  to  give 
me  an  informal  reception,  and  where  I  was  to  make  my 
headquarters  during  my  visit  in  the  great  metropolis.  I 
had  an  elegant  dinner  at  the  club  rooms,  with  the  gentle- 
men who  had  been  out  on  the  September  hunt,  and  other 
members  of  the  club. 

After  dinner,  in  company  with  Mr.  Hecksher — who  acted 
as  my  guide — I  started  out  on  the  trail  of  my  friend,  Ned 
Buntline,  whom  we  found  at  the  Brevoort  Place  Hotel. 
He  was  delighted  to  see  me,  and  insisted  on  my  becoming 
his  guest.  He  would  listen  to  no  excuses,  and  on  introducing 
me  to  Messrs.  Overtoil  &  Blair,  proprietors  of  the  Brevoort, 
they  also  gave  me  a  pressing  invitation  to  make  my  home 
at  their  house.  I  finally  compromised  the  matter  by  agree- 
ing to  divide  my  time  between  the  Union  Club,  the  Bre- 
voort House,  and  Ned  Buntline's  quarters. 


DOING  NEW  YORK.  309 

The  next  few  days  I  spent  in  viewing  the  sights  of  New 
York,  everything  being  new  and  startling,  convincing  me 
that  as  yet  I  had  seen  but  a  small  portion  of  the  world. 
I  received  numerous  dinner  invitations,  as  well  as  invita- 
tions to  visit  different  places  of  amusement  and  interest; 
but  as  they  came  in  so  thick  and  fast,  I  soon  became 
badly  demoralized  and  confused.  I  found  I  had  accepted 
Invitations  to  dine  at  half  a  dozen  or  more  houses  on  the 
same  day  and  at  the  same  hour.  James  Gordon  Bennett 
had  prepared  a  dinner  for  me,  at  which  quite  a  large  num- 
ber of  his  friends  were  to  be  present,  but  owing  to  my 
confusion,  arising  from  the  many  other  invitations  I  had 
received,  I  forgot  all  about  it,  and  dined  elsewhere.  This 
was  "  a  bad  break,"  but  I  did  not  learn  of  my  mistake  until 
next  day,  when  at  the  Union  Club  House  several  gentlemen, 
among  them  Lawrence  Jerome,  inquired  "  where  in  the 
world  I  had  been,"  and  why  I  had  not  put  in  an  appearance 
.at  Bennett's  dinner.  They  said  that  Bennett  had  taken 
great  pains  to  give  me  a  splendid  reception,  that  the  party 
had  waited  till  nine  o'clock  for  me,  and  that  my  non-arrival 
caused  considerable  disappointment.  I  apologized  as  well 
as  I  could,  by  saying  that  I  had  been  out  on  a  scout  and  had 
got7  lost,  and  had  forgotten  all  about  the  dinner ;  and  ex- 
pressed my  regret  for  the  disappointment  I  had  created  by 
my  forgetfulness.  August  Belmont,  the  banker,  being  near 
said : 

"Never  mind,  gentlemen,  Til  give  Cody  a  dinner  at  my 
house." 

"  Thank  you,  sir,"  said  I;  "I  see  you  are  determined  that 
I  shall  not  run  short  of  rations  while  I  am  in  the  city.  I'll 
be  there,  sure." 

Both  Mr.  Jerome  and  Mr.  Hecksher  told  me  that  1  must 
not  disappoint  Mr.  Belmont,  for  his  dinners  were  splendid 
affairs.  I  made  a  note  of  the  date,  and  at  the  appointed 
time  I  was  promptly  at  Mr.  Belmont's  mansion,  where  I  spent 
a  very  enjoyable  evening. 

Mr.  Bennett,  who  was  among  the  guests,  having  forgiven 


310  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

my  carelessness,  invited  me  to  accompany  him  to  the 
Liederkranz  masked  ball,  which  was  to  take  place  in  a  few 
evenings,  and  would  be  a  grand  spectacle.  Together  we 
attended  the  ball,  and  during  the  evening  I  was  well  enter- 
tained. The  dancers  kept  on  their  masks  until  midnight, 
and  the  merry  and  motley  throng  presented  a  brilliant  scene, 
moving  gracefully  beneath  the  bright  gas-light  to  the  inspirit- 
ing music.  To  me  it  was  a  novel  and  entertaining  sight, 
and  in  many  respects  reminded  me  greatly  of  an  Indian 
war-dance. 

Acting  upon  the  suggestion  of  Mr.  Bennett,  I  had  dressed 
myself  in  my  buckskin  suit,  and  I  naturally  attracted  con- 
siderable attention  ;  especially  when  1  took  part  in  the  danc- 
ing and  exhibited  some  of  my  backwoods  steps,  which, 
although  not  as  graceful  as  some,  were  a  great  deal  more 
emphatic.  But  when  I  undertook  to  do  artistic  dancing,  I 
found  I  was  decidedly  out  of  place  in  that  crowd,  and  I 
accordingly  withdrew  from  the  floor. 

I  occasionally  passed  an  evening  at  Niblo's  Garden,  view- 
ing the  many  beauties  of  "  The  Black  Crook,"  which  was. 
then  having  its  long  run,  under  the  management  of  Jarrett 
&  Palmer,  whose  acquaintance  I  had  made,  and  who  ex- 
tended to  me  the  freedom  of  the  theater. 

Ned  Buntline  and  Fred  Maeder  had  dramatized  one  of  the 
stories  which  the  former  had  written  about  me  for  the  New 
York  Weekly.  The  drama  was  called  "Buffalo  Bill,  the 
King  of  Border  Men."  While  I  was  in  New  York  it  was 
produced  at  the  Bowery  Theater;  J.  B.  Studley,  an  excel- 
lent actor,  appearing  in  the  character  of  "  Buffalo  Bill,"  and 
Mrs.  "W.  G.  Jones,  a  fine  actress,  taking  the  part  of  my 
sister,  a  leading  role.  I  was  curious  to  see  how  I  would  look 
when  represented  by  some  one  else,  and  of  course  1  was 
present  on  the  opening  night,  a  private  box  having  been 
reserved  for  me.  The  theater  was  packed,  every  seat 
being  occupied  as  well  as  the  standing-room.  The  drama 
was  played  smoothly,  and  created  a  great  deal  of  enthusiasm. 


FACING  AN  AUDIENCE.  311 

The  audience,  upon  learning  that  the  real  "  Buffalo  Bill  " 
was  present,  gave  several  cheers  between  the  acts,  and 
I  was  called  on  to  come  out  on  the  stage  and  make  a  speech. 
Mr.  Freleigh,  the  manager,  insisted  that  I  should  comply 
with  the  request,  and  that  I  should  be  introduced  to  Mr. 
Studley.  I  finally  consented,  and  the  next  moment  I  found 
myself  standing  behind  the  footlights  and  in  front  of  an. 
audience  for  the  first  time  in  my  life.  I  looked  up,  then 
down,  then  on  each  side,  and  everywhere  I  saw  a  sea  of 
human  faces,  and  thousands  of  eyes  all  staring  at  me.  I 
confess  that  I  felt  very  much  embarrassed — never  more  so- 
in  my  life — and  I  knew  not  what  to  say.  I  made  a  des- 
perate effort,  and  a  few  words  escaped  me,  but  what  they 
were  I  could  not  for  the  life  of  me  tell,  nor  could  any  one 
else  in  the  house.  My  utterances  were  inaudible  even  to- 
the  leader  of  the  orchestra,  Mr.  Dean,  who  was  sitting  only 
a  few  feet  in  front  of  me.  Bowing  to  the  audience,  I  beat 
a  hasty  retreat  into  one  of  the  canons  of  the  stage.  I  never 
felt  more  relieved  in  my  life  than  when  I  got  out  of  tha 
view  of  that  immense  crowd. 

That  evening  Mr.  Freleigh  offered  to  give  me  five  hundred 
dollars  a  week  to  play  the  part  of  "  Buffalo  Bill  "  myself. 
I  thought  that  he  was  certainly  joking,  especially  as  he  had 
witnessed  my  awkward  performance  ;  but  when  he  assured 
me  that  he  was  in  earnest,  I  told  him  that  it  would  be  use- 
less for  me  to  attempt  anything  of  the  kind,  for  I  never 
could  talk  to  a  crowd  of  people  like  that,  even  if  it  was  to* 
save  my  neck,  and  that  he  might  as  well  try  to  make  an 
actor  out  of  a  government  mule.  I  thanked  him  for  the 
generous  offer,  which  I  had  to  decline  owing  to  a  lack  of 
confidence  in  myself;  or  as  some  people  might  express  it,  I 
didn't  have  the  requisite  cheek  to  undertake  a  thing  of  that 
sort.  The  play  of  "  Buffalo  Bill "  had  a  very  successful 
run  of  six  or  eight  weeks,  and  was  afterwards  produced  in 
all  the  principal  cities  of  the  country,  everywhere  being 
received  with  genuine  enthusiasm. 


312  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

I  had  been  in  New  York  about  twenty  days  when  General 
Sheridan  arrived  in  the  city.  I  met  him  soon  after  he  got 
into  town.  In  answer  to  a  question  how  I  was  enjoying 
myself,  I  replied  that  1  had  struck  the  best  camp  I  had  ever 
seen,  and  if  he  didn't  have  any  objections  I  would  like  to 
have  my  leave  of  absence  extended  about  ten  days.  This 
lie  willingly  did,  and  then  informed  me  that  my  services 
would  soon  be  required  at  Fort  McPherson,  as  there- was  to 
be  an  expedition  sent  out  from  that  point. 

At  Westchester,  Pennsylvania,  I  had  some  relatives  living 
whom  I  had  never  seen,  and  now  being  so  near,  I  deter- 
mined to  make  them  a  visit.  Upon  mentioning  the  matter 
to  Buntline,  he  suggested  that  we  should  together  take  a 
trip  to  Philadelphia,  and  thence  run  out  to  Westchester. 
Accordingly  the  next  day  found  us  in  the  "  City  of  Brotherly 
Love,"  and  in  a  few  hours  we  arrived  at  the  home  of  my 
uncle,  General  Henry  R.  Guss,  the  proprietor  of  the  Green 
Tree  Hotel,  who  gave  us  a  cordial  reception. 

Inviting  us  into  the  parlor,  my  uncle  brought  in  the  mem- 
bers of  his  family,  among  them  an  elderly  lady,  who  was 
tny  grandmother,  as  he  informed  me.  He  told  me  that  my 
Aunt  Eliza,  his  first  wife,  was  dead,  and  that  he  had  married 
a  second  time  ;  Lizzie  Guss,  my  cousin,  I  thought  was  the 
most  beautiful  girl  I  had  ever  seen.  They  were  all  very 
anxious  to  have  us  remain  several  days,  but  as  I  had  some 
business  to  attend  to  in  New  York,  I  was  obliged  to  return 
that  day.  Assuring  them,  however,  that  I  would  visit  them 
again  soon,  I  bade  them  adieu,  and  with  Buntline  took  the 
train  for  New  York. 

The  time  soon  arrived  for  my  departure  for  the  West ; 
so  packing  up  my  traps  I  started  for  home,  and  on  the  way 
thither  I  spent  a  day  with  my  Westchester  relatives,  who 
did  everything  in  their  power  to  entertain  me  during  my 
brief  stay  with  them. 


CHAPTER   XXVII. 

HONORS. 

UPON  reaching  Fort  McPherson,  I  found  that  the  Third 
Cavalry,  commanded  by  General  Reynolds,  had  arrived 
from  Arizona,  in  which  Territory  they  had  been  on  duty  for 
some  time,  and  where  they  had  acquired  quite  a  reputation 
on  account  of  their  Indian  fighting  qualities. 

Shortly  after  my  return,  a  small  party  of  Indians  made  a 
dash  on  McPherson  Station,  about  five  miles  from  the  fort, 
killing  two  or  three  men  and  running  off  quite  a  large  num- 
ber of  horses.  Captain  Meinhold  and  Lieutenant  Lawson 
with  their  company  were  ordered  out  to  pursue  and  punish 
the  Indians  if  possible.  I  was  the  guide  of  the  expedition 
and  had  as  an  assistant  T.  B.  Omohundro,  better  known  as 
"  Texas  Jack  "  and  who  was  a  scout  at  the  post. 

Finding  the  trail,  I  followed  it  for  two  days,  although  it 
was  difficult  trailing  because  the  red-skins  had  taken  every 
possible  precaution  to  conceal  their  track?.  On  the  second 
day  Captain  Meinhold  went  into  camp  on  the  South  Fork  of 
the  Loupe,  at  a  point  where  the  trail  was  badly  scattered.  Six 
men  "were  detailed  to  accompany  me  on  a  scout  in  search  of 
the  camp  of  the  fugitives.  We  had  gone  but  a  short  dis- 
tance when  we  discovered  Indians  camped,  not  more  than  a 
mile  away,  with  horses  grazing  near  by.  They  were  only  a 
small  party,  and  I  determined  to  charge  upon  them  with  my 

313 


314  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

six  men,  rather  than  return  to  the  command,  because  I  feared 
they  would  see  us  as  we  went  back  and  then  they  would  get 
away  from  us  entirely.  I  asked  the  men  if  they  were  willing 
to  attempt  it,  and  they  replied  that  they  would  follow  me 
wherever  I  would  lead  them.  That  was  the  kind  of  spirit 
that  pleased  me,  and  we  immediately  moved  forward  on  the 
enemy,  getting  as  close  to  them  as  possible  without  being 
seen. 

I  finally  gave  the  signal  to  charge,  and  we  dashed  into  the 
little  camp  with  a  yell.  Five  Indians  sprang  out  of  a  wil- 
low tepee,  and  greeted  us  with  a  volley,  and  we  returned 
the  fire.  I  was  riding  Buckskin  Joe,  who  with  a  few  jumps 
brought  me  up  to  the  tepee,  followed  by  my.  men.  We 
nearly  ran  over  the  Indians  who  were  endeavoring  to  reach 
their  horses  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  creek.  Just  as  one 
was  jumping  the  narrow  stream  a  bullet  from  my  old 
"  Lucretia "  overtook  him.  He  never  reached  the  other 
bank,  but  dropped  dead  in  the  water.  Those  of  the  Indians 
who  were  guarding  the  horses,  seeing  what  was  going  on 
at  the  camp,  came  rushing  to  the  rescue  of  their  friends.  I 
now  counted  thirteen  braves,  but  as  we  had  already  dis- 
posed of  two,  we  had  only  eleven  to  take  care  of.  The  odds 
were  nearly  two  to  one  against  us. 

"While  the  Indian  reinforcements  were  approaching  the 
camp  I  jumped  the  creek  with  Buckskin  Joe  to  meet  them, 
expecting  our  party  would  follow  me ;  but  as  they  could  not 
induce  their  horses  to  make  the  leap,  I  was  the  only  one  who 
got  over.  I  ordered  the  sergeant  to  dismount  his  men,  and 
leaving  one  to  hold  the  horses,  to  come  over  with  the  rest 
and  help  me  drive  the  Indians  off.  Before  they  could  do 
this,  two  mounted  warriors  closed  in  on  me  and  were  shoot- 
ing at  short  range.  I  returned  their  fire  and  had  the  satis- 
faction of  seeing  one  of  them  fall  from  his  horse.  At  this 
moment  I  felt  blood  trickling  down  my  forehead,  and  hastily 
running  my  hand  through  my  hair  I  discovered  that  I  had 
received  a  scalp  wound.  The  Indian,  who  had  shot  me, 


A  HARD  FIGHT  WITH  INDIANS.  315 

was  not  more  than  ten  yards  away,  and  when  he  saw  his 
partner  tumble  from  his  saddle,  he  turned  to  run. 

By  this  time  the  soldiers  had  crossed  the  creek  to  assist 
me,  and  were  blazing  away  at  the  other  Indians.  Urging 
Buckskin  Joe  forward,  I  was  soon  alongside  of  the  chap 
who  had  wounded  me,  when  raising  myself  in  the  stirrups  I 
shot  him  through  the  head. 

The  reports  of  our  guns  had  been  heard  by  Captain  Mein- 
hold,  who  at  once  started  with  his  company  up  the  creek  to 
our  aid,  and  when  the  remaining  Indians,  whom  we  were  still 
fighting,  saw  these  reinforcements  coming  they  whirled  their 
horses  and  fled;  as  their  steeds  were  quite  fresh  they 
made  their  escape.  However,  we  killed  six  out  of  the  thir- 
tee"n  Indians,  and  captured  most  of  their  stolen  stock.  Our 
loss  was  one  man  killed,  and  one  man — myself — slightly 
wounded.  One  of  our  horses  was  killed,  and  Buckskin 
Joe  was  wounded,  but  I  didn't  discover  the  fact  until  some 
time  afterwards  as  he  had  been  shot  in  the  breast  and  showed 
no  signs  of  having  received  a  scratch  of  any  kind.  Securing 
the  scalps  of  the  dead  Indians  and  other  trophies  we 
returned  to  the  fort. 

I  made  several  other  scouts  during  the  summer  with  dif- 
ferent officers  of  the  Third  Cavalry,  one  being  with  Major 
Alick  Moore,  a  good  officer,  with  whom  I  was  out  for  thirty 
days.  Another  long  one  was  with  Major  Curtis,  with  whom 
I  followed  some  Indians  from  the  South  Platte  river  to  Fort 
Randall  on  the  Missouri  river  in  Dakota,  on  which  trip  the 
command  ran  put  of  rations  and  for  fifteen  days  subsisted 
entirely  upon  the  game  we  killed. 

In  the  fall  of  1872  the  Earl  of  Dunraven  and  Dr.  Kings- 
ley  with  several  friends  came  to  Fort  McPherson  with  a  let- 
ter from  General  Sheridan,  asking  me  to  accompany  them 
on  an  elk  hunt.  I  did  so,  and  I  afterwards  spent  several 
weeks  in  hunting  with  the  Earl  of  Dunraven,  who  was  a 
thorough  sportsman  and  an  excellent  hunter.  It  was  while 
I  was  out  with  the  Earl,  that  a  Chicago  party — friends  of 


316 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


General  Sheridan— arrived  at ^ Fort  McPherson  for  the  pur- 
pose of  going  out  on  a  hunt.  They,  too,  had  a  letter  from 
the  General  requesting  me  to  go  with  them.  The  Earl 
had  not  yet  finished  his  hunt,  but  as  I  had  been  out  with 
him  for  several  weeks,  and  he  had  by  this  time  learned 
where  to  find  plenty  of  elks  and  other  game,  I  concluded  to 
leave  him  and  accompany  the  Chicago  party.  I  informed 

him  of  my  inten- 
tion and  gave  him 
my  reasons  for 
going,  at  the  same 
time  telling  him 
that  I  would  send 
him  one  of  my 
scouts,  Texas  Jack> 
w  h  o  w  a  s  a  good 
hunter,  and  would 
be  glad  t  o  accom- 
pany him.  The 
Earl  seemed  to  be 
somewhat  offended 
it  this,  and  I  don't 
think  he  has  ever 
forgiven  me  for 
"going  back  on 
him."  Let  that  be 
as  it  may,  he  found 
Texas  Jack  a  splendid  hunter  and  guide,  and  Jack  has  been 
his  guide  on  several  hunts  since. 

Among  the  gentlemen  who  composed  the  Chicago  party 
were  E.  P.  Green, — son-in-law  of  Remington,  the  rifle  manu- 
facturer,—Alexander  Sample,  Mr.  Milligan,  of  the  firm  of 
Heath  &  Milligan,  of  Chicago,  and  several  others,  whose 
names  I  do  not  now  remember.  Mr.  Milligan  was  a  man 
full  of  life,  and  was  continually  "boiling  over  with  fan." 
He  was  a  regular  velocipede,  so  to  speak,  and  was  here, 


A  HUNT  WITH  MILLIGAN. 

there,  and  everywhere.  He  was  exceedingly  desirous  of 
having  an  Indian  fight  on  the  trip,  not  that  he  was  naturally 
a  blood-thirsty  man  but  just  for  variety  he  wanted  a  little 
"  Indian  pie."  He  was  in  every  respect  the  life  of  the  party,, 
during  the  entire  time  that  we  were  out.  One  day  while  he 
was  hunting  with  Sample  and  myself  we  came  in  sight  of  a 
band  of  thirty  mounted  Indians. 

"Milligan,  here's  what  yourve  been  wanting  for  some 
time,"  said  1,  "  for  yonder  is  a  war  party  of  Indians  and  no- 
mistake  ;  and  they'll  come  for  us,  you  bet." 

"I  don't  believe  this  is  one  of  my  fighting  days,"  replied 
Milligan,  "and  it  occurs  to  me  that  I  have  urgent  business* 
at  the  camp." 

Our  camp  was  five  or  six  miles  distant  on  the  Dismal 
river,  and  our  escort  consisted  of  a  company  of  cavalry  com- 
manded by  Captain  Kussell.  The  soldiers  were  in  camp,, 
and  Milligan  thought  that  Captain  Russell  ought  to  be  at 
once  notified  of  the  appearance  of  these  Indians.  Knowing 
that  we  could  reach  the  camp  in  safety,  for  we  were  well 
mounted,  I  continued  to  have  considerable  amusement  at 
Milligan's  expense,  who  finally  said  : 

"  Cody,  what's  making  my  hat  raise  up  so.  I  can  hardly 
keep  it  on  my  head." 

Sample,  who  was  as  cool  as  a  cucumber,  said  to  Milligan : 
"  There  must  be  something  wrong  with  your  hair.  It  must 
be  trying  to  get  on  end." 

"It's  all  very  fine  for  you  fellows  to  stand  here  and  talk," 
replied  Milligan,  "but  I  am  not  doing  justice  to  my  family 
by  remaining.  Sample,  I  think  we  are  a  couple  of  old  fools 
to  have  come  out  here,  and  I  never  would  have  done  so  if  it 
had  not  been  for  you." 

By  this  time  the  Indians  had  discovered  us  and  were  hold- 
ing a  consultation,  and  Milligan  turned  his  horse  in  the 
direction  of  the  camp.  I  never  believed  that  he  was  half  as 
scared  as  he  seemed  to  be,  but  that  he  was  merely  pretend- 
ing so  that  we  could  enjoy  our  joke.  However,  we  did  not 


318  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


any  longer  but  rode  into  camp  and  notified  Captain 
Russell,  who  immediately  started  with  his  company  to  pur- 
sue the  band. 

While  we  were  riding  along  with  the  company  Milligan 
-said  to  Sample  :  "Now,  Alick,  let  them  come  on.  We  may 
jet  go  back  to  Chicago  covered  with  glory." 

We  struck  the  trail  going  north,  but  as  we  had  not  come 
out  on  a  scout  for  Indians,  we  concluded  not  to  follow  them  ; 
although  Milligan  was  now  very  anxious  to  proceed  and 
clean  them  out. 

The  hunt  came  to  an  end  in  a  day  or  two,  and  we  escorted 
the  visiting  hunters  to  North  Platte,  where  they  took  the 
train  for  Chicago.  Before  their  departure  they  extended  to 
me  a  very  cordial  invitation  to  come  to  their  city  on  a  visit, 
promising  that  I  should  be  well  taken  care  of. 

Soon  after  this  I  had  the  pleasure  of  guiding  a  party  of 
.gentlemen  from  Omaha  on  a  buffalo  hunt.  Among  the 
num  her  were  Judge  Dnndy,  Colonel  Watson  B.  Smith,  and 
U.  S.  District  Attorney  Neville.  We  left  Fort  McPherson 
in  good  trim.  I  was  greatly  amused  at  the  "  style  "  of  Mr. 
Neville,  who  wore  a  stove-pipe  hat  and  a  swallow-tail  coat, 
which  made  up  a  very  comical  rig  for  a  buffalo  hunter.  As 
we  galloped  over  the  prairie,  he  jammed  his  hat  down  over 
his  ears  to  keep  it  from  being  shaken  oft'  his  head,  and  in 
order  to  stick  to  his  horse,  he  clung  to  the  pommel  of  his 
saddle.  He  was  not  much  of  a  rider,  and  he  went  bouncing 
up  and  down,  with  his  swallow-tails  flopping  in  the  air.  The 
sight  I  shall  never  forget,  for  it  was  enough  to  make  a 
"  horse  laugh,"  and  I  actually  believe  old  Buckskin  Joe  did 
laugh. 

However,  we  had  a  splendid  hunt,  and  on  the  second  day 
I  lariated,  or  roped,  a  big  buffalo  bull  and  tied  him  to  a  tree, 
—  a  feat  which  I  had  often  performed,  and  which  the  gentle- 
men requested  me  to  do  on  this  occasion  for  their  benefit, 
as  they  had  heard  of  my  skill  with  the  lariat.  I  captured 
several  other  buffaloes  in  the  same  way.  The  gentlemen 
returned  to  Omaha  well  pleased  with  their  hunt. 


ELECTED  TO  THE  NEBRASKA  LEGISLATURE. 


319 


In  the  fall  of  the  year,  1872,  a  convention  was  held  at 
Grand  Island,  when  some  of  my  friends  made  me  their  can- 
didate to  represent  the  Twenty-sixth  District  in  the  legisla- 
ture of  Nebraska  ;  but  as  I  had  always  been  a  Democrat  and 
the  State  was  largely  Republican,  I  had  no  idea  of  being 
elected.  In  iact  I  cared  very  little  about  it,  and  therefore 
made  no  effort  whatever  to  secure  an  election.  However,  I 
was  elected  and  that  is  the  way  in  which  I  acquired  my  title 
of  Honorable. 


19 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

AN    ACTOK. 

DURING  the  summer  and  fall  of  1872, 1  received  numer- 
ous letters  from  Ned  Buntline,  urging  me  to  come  East 
and  go    upon   the   stage   to   represent    my   own    character. 
"  There's  money  in  it,"  he  wrote,  "  and  you  will  prove  a  big 
card,  as  your  character  is  a  novelty  on  the  stage." 

At  times  I  almost  determined  to  make  the  venture ;  but 
the  recollection  of  that  night  when  I  stood  on  the  stage 
of  the  Bowery  Theatre  and  was  unable  to  utter  a  word 
above  a  whisper,  would  cause  me  to  stop  and  think  and  be- 
come irresolute.  I  feared  that  I  would  be  a  total  failure,, 
and  wrote  Buntline  to  that  effect.  But  he  insisted  that  I 
would  soon  get  over  all  that  embarrassment,  and  become  ac- 
customed to  th6  stage,  so  that  I  would  think  no  more  of 
appearing  before  five  thousand  people  than  I  would  before 
half  a  dozen.  He  proposed  to  organize  a  good  company^ 
and  wished  me  to  meet  him  in  Chicago,  where  the  opening 
performance  would  be  given. 

I  remained  undecided  as  to  what  I  ought  to  do.  The 
officers  at  the  fort  as  well  'as  my  family  and  friends  to  whom 
I  had  mentioned  the  matter,  laughed  at  the  idea  of  my  ever 
becoming  an  actor.  That  I,  an  old  scout  who  had  never 
seen  more  than  twenty  or  thirty  theatrical  performances  in 
my  life,  should  think  of  going  upon  the  stage,  was  ridiculous 
ill  the  extreme — so  they  all  said. 

320 


DECIDING  TO  GO  ON  THE  STAGE.  321 

A  few  days  after  my  election  to  the  legislature  a  happy 
event  occurred  in  my  family  circle,  in  the  birth  of  a  daughter 
whom  we  named  Ora ;  about  the  same  time  I  received 
another  letter  from  Buntliiie,  in  which  he  requested  me  to 
appear  on  the  stage  for  a  few  months  as  an  experiment ;  and 

he  said  that  if  I  made  a  failure  or  did  riot  like  the  business, 
i  ' 

I  could  easily  return  to  my  old  life. 

My  two  sisters  who  had  been  living  with  us  had  married, 
— Nellie,  to  A.  C.  Jester,  a  cattle  man,  and  May,  to  Ed.  Brad- 
ford, a  railroad  engineer — and  consequently  left  us ;  and  my 
wife  had  been  wishing  for  a  long  time  to  visit  her  parents  in 
St.  Louis.  Taking  these  and  other  things  into  consideration 
I  finally  resolved  to  resign  my  seat  in  the  legislature  and  try 
my  luck  behind  the  footlights.  I  informed  General  Rey- 
nolds of  my  determination,  telling  him  at  the  same  time  that 
at  the  end  of  the  month,  November,  I  would  resign  my 
position  under  him.  The  General  regretted  to  hear  this, 
and  advised  me  not  to  take  the  step,  for  I  was  leaving  a  com- 
fortable little  home,  where  I  was  sure  of  making  a  good  liv- 
ing for  my  family ;  while,  on  the  other  hand,  I  was  embark- 
ing upon  a  sea  of  uncertainty.  Having  once  made  up  my 
mind,  however,  nothing  could  change  it. 

While  I  was  selling  my  horses  and  other  effects,  prepara- 
tory to  leaving  the  fort,  one  of  my  brother  scouts,  Texas 
Jack,  said  that  he  would  like  to  accompany  me.  Now  as 
Jack  had  also  appeared  as  the  hero  in  one  of  Ned  Buntline's 
stories,  I  thought  that  he  would  make  as  good  a  "star  "as 
myself,  and  it  was  accordingly  arranged  that  Jack  should  go 
with  me.  On  our  way  East  we  stopped  in  Omaha  a  day  or 
two  to  visit  General  Augur  and  other  officers,  and  also  the 
gentlemen  who  were  out  on  the  Judge  Dundy  hunt.  Judge 
Dundy  and  his  friends  gave  a  dinner  party  in  my  honor  at 
the  leading  restaurant  and  entertained  me  very  handsomely 
during  my  stay  in  the  city. 

At  Omaha  I  parted  with  my  family,  who  went  to  St  Louis, 
while  Jack  and  myself  proceeded  to  Chicago.  Ned  Bunt- 


322  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

line  and  Mr.  Milligan,  having  been  apprised  of  our  coming 
by  a  telegram,  met  us  at  the  depot.  Mr.  Milligan  accom- 
panied us  to  the  Sherman  House,  where  he  had  made  arrange- 
ments for  us  to  be  his  guests  while  we  remained  in  the  city. 
I  didn't  see  much  of  Bimtline  that  evening,  as  he  hurried 
off  to  deliver  a  temperance  lecture  in  one  of  the  public  halls. 
The  next  day  we  met  him  by  appointment,  and  the  first 
thing  he  said,  was  : 

"  Boys,  are  you  ready  for  business  ? " 

"I  can't  answer  that,"  replied  I,  "for  we  don't  know 
what  we  are  going  to  do." 

"  It's  all  arranged,"  said  he,  "  and  you'll  have  no  trouble 
whatever.  Come  with  me.  We'll  go  and  see  Nixon,  man- 
ager of  the  Amphitheatre.  That's  the  place  where  we  are 
to  play.  We'll  open  there  next  Monday  night."  Jack  and 
myself  accordingly  accompanied  him  to  manager  Nixon's 
office  without  saying  a  word,  as  we  didn't  know  what  to  say. 

"  Here  we  are,  Mr.  Nixon,"  said  Buntline  ;  "  here  are  the 
stars  for  you.  Here  are  the  boys ;  and  they  are  a  fine  pair 
to  draw  too.  Now,  Nixon,  I  am  prepared  for  business." 

Nixon  and  Buntline  had  evidently  had  a  talk  about  the 
terms  of  our  engagement.  Buntline,  it  seems,  was  to  fur- 
nish the  company,  the  drama,  and  the  pictorial  printing,  and 
was  to  receive  sixty  per  cent,  of  the  gross  receipts  for  his 
share ;  while  Nixon  was  to  furnish  the  theater,  the  attaches, 
the  orchestra,  and  the  local  printing;  and  receive  forty  per 
cent,  of  the  gross  receipts. 

"  I  am  ready  for  you,  Buntline.  Have  you  got  your  com- 
pany yet  ? "  asked  Nixon. 

"No,  sir;  but  there  are  plenty  of  idle  theatrical  people  in 
town,  and  I  can  raise  a  company  in  two  hours,"  was  his 
reply. 

"  You  haven't  much  time  to  spare,  if  you  open  on  Mon- 
day night,"  said  Nixon.  "If  you  will  allow  me  to  look  at 
your  drama,  to  see  what  kind  of  people  you  want,  I'll  assist 
you  in  organizing  your  company." 


BUNTLINE  HIRES  A  THEATRE.  323 

"I  have  not  yet  written  the  drama,"  said  Buntline. 

"What  the  deuce  do  you  mean?  This  is  Wednesday,  and 
you  propose  to  open  on  next  Monday  night.  The  idea  is 
ridiculous.  Here  you  are  at  this  late  hour  without  a  com- 
pany and  without  a  drama.  This  will  never  do,  Buntline. 
I  shall  have  to  break  my  contract  with  you,  for  you  can't 
possibly  write  a  drama,  cast  it,  and  rehearse  it  properly  for 
Monday  night.  Furthermore,  you  have  no  pictorial  printing 
as  yet.  These  two  gentlemen,  whom  you  have  with  yon, 
have  never  been  on  the  stage, -and  they  certainly  must  have 
time  to  study  their  parts.  It  is  preposterous  to  think  of 
opening  on  Monday  night,  and  I'll  cancel  the  engagement." 

This  little  speech  was  delivered  in  rather  an  excited  man- 
ner by  Mr.  Nixon.  Buntline  said  that  he  would  write  the 
drama  that  day  and  also  select  his  company  and  have  them 
at  the  theater  for  rehearsal  next  morning.  Nixon  laughed 
at  him,  and  said  that  there  was  no  use  of  trying  to  undertake 
anything  of  the  kind  in  so  short  a  time — it  was  utterly 
impossible  to  do  it.  Buntline,  whose  ire  was  rising,  said  to 
Nixon  : 

"  What  rent  will  you  ask  for  your  theater  for  next  week? " 

"  Six  hundred  dollars,"  was  the  reply. 

"  Well,  sir,  I'll  take  your  theater  for  next  week  at  that 
price,  and  here  is  half  of  the  amount  in  advance,"  said  Bunt- 
line,  as  he  threw  down  three  hundred  dollars  on  the  stand. 

Nixon  took  the  money,  gave  a  receipt  for  it,  and  had 
nothing  more  to  say. 

"Now,  come  with  me  boys,"  said  Buntline  ;  and  away  we 
went  to  the  hotel.  Buntline  immediately  obtained  a  supply 
of  pens,  ink  and  paper,  and  then  engaged  all  the  hotel  clerks 
as  penmen.  In  less  than  an  hour  after  he  had  rented  the 
theater,  he  was  dashing  off  page  after  page  of  his  proposed 
drama — the  work  being  done  in  his  room  at  the  hotel.  He 
then  set  his  clerks  at  copying  for  him,  and  at  the  end  of 
four  hours,  he  jumped  up  from  the  table,  and  enthusiastically 
shouted : 


324 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL, 


"  Hurrah  for  '  The  Scouts  of  the  Plains  ! '      That's   the 
name  of  the  play.     The  work  is  done.     Hurrah  !  " 

The  parts  were  then  all  copied  off  separately  by  the  clerks, 
and  handing  us  our  respective  portions  Buntline  said  : 

"Now,  boys,  go  to  work,  and  do  your  level  best  to  have 
this  dead-letter  perfect  for  the  rehearsal,  which   takes  place 

to-morrow  morning  at  ten 
o'clock,  prompt.  I  want 
to  show  Nixon  that  we'll  be 
ready  on  time." 

I  looked  at  my  part  and 
then  at  Jack;  and  Jack 
looked  at  his  part  and  then 
at  me.  Then  we  looked  at 
each  other,  and  then  at 
Buntline.  We  did  not  know 
i  what  to  make  of  the  man. 

"How  long  will  it  take 
you  to  commit  your  part  to 
memory,  Bill?"  asked  Jack. 
"  About  six  months,  a  s 
near  as  I  can  calculate. 
How  long  will  it  take 
you?  "  answered  I. 

"It  will    take  me  about 
that  length  of  time  to  learn  the  iirst  line,"  said  Jack.     Never- 
theless we  went  to  our  room  and  commenced   studying.     I 
thought  it  was  the  hardest  work  I  had  ever  done. 
"  This  is  dry  business,"  finally  remarked  Jack. 
"  That's  just  what  it  is,"  I  answered  ;  "  jerk  the  bell,  Jack." 
The  bell-boy   soon   appeared.      We    ordered  refreshments ; 
after  partaking  thereof  we  resumed  our  task.     We  studied 
hard  for  an  hour  or  two,  but  finally  gave  it  np  as   a  bad  job, 
although  we  had  succeeded  in  committing  a  small  portion  to 
memory.     Buntline  now  came  into  the  room  and  said  : 
"  Boys,  how  are  you  getting  along  ?  " 


STUDYING    THE    PARTS. 


TAKING  THE  "CUE."  325 

"  I  guess  we'll  Lave  to  go  back  on  this  studying  business 
as  it  isn't  our  forte"  said  I. 

"  Don't  weaken  now,  Bill ;  you'll  come  out  on  the  top  of 
the  heap  yet.  Let  me  hear  you  recite  your  part,"  said  Bunt- 
line.  I  began  "  spouting"  what  I  had  learcied,  but  was 
interrupted  by  Buntline  : 

"Tut!  tut!  you're  not  saying  it  right.  You  must  stop 
at  the  cue." 

"  Cue  !  What  the  mischief  do  you  mean  by  the  cue  ?  I 
never  saw  any  cue  except  in  a  billiard  room,"  said  I.  Bunt- 
line  thereupon  explained  it  to  me,  as  well  as  to  Jack,  who 
was  ignorant  as  myself  concerning  the  acue  "  business. 

"  Jack,  I  think  we  had  better  back  out  and  go  to  hunting 
again,"  said  I. 

"  See  here,  boys ;  it  won't  do  to  go  back  on  me  at  this 
stage  of  the  game.  Stick  to  it,  and  it  may  be  the  turning 
point  in  your  lives  and  lead  you  on  to  fortune  and  to  fame." 

"  A  fortune  is  what  we  are  after,  and  we'll  at  least  give 
the  wheel  a  turn  or  two  and  see  what  luck  we  have,"  said  I. 
This  satisfied  Buntline,  but  we  didn't  study  any  more  after 
he  left  us.  The  next  morning  we  appeared  at  rehearsal  and 
were  introduced  to  the  company.  The  iirst  rehearsal  was 
hardly  a  success ;  and  the  succeeding  ones  were  not  much 
better.  The  stage  manager  did  his  best  to  teach  Jack  and 
myself  what  to  do,  but  when  Monday  night  came  we  didn't 
know  much  more  about  it  than  when  we  began. 

The  clock  struck  seven,  and  then  we  put  on  our  buckskin 
suits,  which  were  the  costumes  we  were  to  appear  in.  The 
theater  was  being  rapidly  filled,  and  it  was  evident  that  we 
were  going  to  make  our  dcljut  before  a  packed  house.  As 
the  minutes  passed  by,  Jack  and  I  became  more  and  more 
nervous.  We  occasionally  looked  through  the  holes  in  the 
curtain,  and  saw  that  the  people  were  continuing  to  crowd 
into  the  theatre ;  our  nervousness  increased  to  an  uncom- 
fortable degree. 

When  at  length  the  curtain  arose,  our  courage  had  re- 


326 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


turned,  so  that  we  thought  we  could  face  the  immense 
crowd  ;  yet  when  the  time  came  for  us  to  go  on,  we  were 
rather  slow  in  making  our  appearance.  As  we  stepped 
forth  we  were  received  with  a  storm  of  applause,  which  we 
acknowledged  with  a  bow. 

Buntline,  who  was  taking  the  part  of  "  Gale  Durg,"  ap- 
peared, and  gave  me  the  "  cue  "  to  speak  "  my  little  piece," 
but  for  the  life  of  me  I  could  not  remember  a  single  word* 


BEHIND    THE    FOOTLIGHTS. 

Buntline  saw  I  was  "  stuck,"  and  a  happy  thought  occurred 
to  him.     He  said — as  if  it  were  in  the  play  : 

"Where  have  you  been.  Bill  ?  What  has  kept  yon  so  long  ? " 
Just  then  my  eye  happened  to  fall  on  Mr.  Milligan,  who 
was  surrounded  by  his  friends,  the  newspaper  reporters,  and 
several  military  officers,  all  of  whom  had  heard  of  his  hunt 
and  "  Indian  fight " — he  being  a  very  popular  man.  and 
widely  known  in  Chicago.  So  I  said  : 

"I  have  been  out  on  a  hunt  with  Milligan." 


OUR  FIRST  APPEARANCE.  327 

This  proved  to  be  a  big  hit.  The  audience  cheered  and 
applauded ;  which  gave  rne  greater  confidence  in  my  ability 
to  get  through  the  performance  all  right.  Buntline,  who  is. 
a  very  versatile  man,  saw  that  it  would  be  a  good  plan  to- 
follow  this  up,  and  he  said  : 

"  Well,  Bill,  tell  us  all  about  the  hunt.'' 

I  thereupon  proceeded  to  relate  in  detail  the  particulars 
of  the  affair.  I  succeeded  in  making  it  rather  funny,  and  I 
was  frequently  interrupted  by  rounds  of  applause.  When- 
ever I  began  to  "  weaken,"  Buntline  would  give  me  a  fresh 
start,  by  asking  some  question.  In  this  way  I  took  up 
fifteen  minutes,  without  once  speaking  a  word  of  my  part ; 
nor  did  I  speak  a  word  of  it  during  the  whole  evening. 
The  prompter,  who  was  standing  between  the  wings,  at- 
tempted to  prompt  me,  but  it  did  no  good  ;  for  while  I  was- 
on  the  stage  I  "  chipped  in  "  anything  I  thought  of. 

"The  Scouts  of  the  Plains"  was  an  Indian  drama,  of 
course;  and  there  were  between  forty  and  fifty  "supers 'r 
dressed  as  Indians.  In  the  fight  with  them,  Jack  and  I 
w^re  at  home.  We  blazed  away  at  each  other  with  blank 
cartridges ;  and  when  the  scene  ended  in  a  hand-to-hand 
encounter — a  general  knock-down  and  drag-out — the  way 
Jack  and  I  killed  Indians  was  "  a  caution."  We  would  kill 
them  all  off  in  one  act,  but  they  would  come  up  again  ready 
for  business  in  the  next.  Finally  the  curtain  dropped  ;  the 
play  was  ended  ;  and  I  congratulated  Jack  and  myself  on 
having  made  such  a  brilliant  and  successful  debut.  There 
was  no  backing  out  after  that. 

The  next  morning  there  appeared  in  the  Chicago  papers 
some  very  funny  criticisms  on  our  first  performance.  The 
papers  gave  us  a  better  send-off  than  I  expected,  for  they 
did  not  criticise  us  as  actors.  The  Chicago  Times  said  that 
if  Buntline  had  actually  spent  four  hours  in  writing  that 
play,  it. was  difficult  for  any  one  to  see  what  he  had  been 
doing  all  the  time.  Buntline,  as  uCale  Durg,"  was  killed 
in  the  second  act,  after  a  long  temperance  speech;  and  the 


328  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

Inter-Ocean  said  that  it  was  to  be  regretted  that  he  had  not 
been  killed  in  the  first  act.  The  company,  however,  was 
very  good,  and  Mdlle.  Morlacchi,  as  "  Pale  Dove,"  particu- 
larly fine ;  while  Miss  Cafarno  "  spouted  "  a  poem  of  some 
seven  hundred  and  three  verses,  more  or  less,  of  which  the 
reader  will  be  glad  to  know  that  I  only  recall  the  words 
"I  was  born  in  March." 

Our  engagement  proved  a  decided  success  financially,  if 
not  artistically.  Nixon  was  greatly  surprised  at  the  result, 
and  at  the  end  of  the  week  he  induced  Buntline  to  take 
him  in  as  a  partner  in  the  company. 

The  next  week  we  played  at  DeBar's  Opera  House,  in  St. 
Louis,  doing  an  immense  business.  The  following  week  we 
were  at  Cincinnati,  where  the  theater  was  so  crowded  every 
night  that  hundreds  were  unable  to  obtain  admission.  We 
met  with  equal  success  all  over  the  country.  Theatrical 
managers,  upon  hearing  of  this  new  and  novel  combination  ; 
which  was  drawing  such  tremendous  houses,  were  all  anxious 
to  secure  us;  and  we  received  offers  of  engagements  at  all 
the  leading  theaters.  We  played  one  week  at  the  Boston 
Theater,  and  the  gross  receipts  amounted  to  $16,200.  We 
also  appeared  at  Niblo's  Garden,  New  York,  the  theater 
being  crowded  to  its  utmost  capacity  every  night  of  the 
engagement.  At  the  Arch  Street  Theater,  Philadelphia, 
it  was  the  same  way.  There  was  not  a  single  city  where 
we  did  not  have  crowded  houses. 

We  closed  our  tour  on  the  16th  of  June,  1873,  at  Port 
Jervis,  New  York,  and  when  I  counted  up  my  share  of  the 
profits  I  found  that  I  was  only  about  $6,000  ahead.  I  was 
somewhat  disappointed,  for,  judging  from  our  large  busi- 
ness, I  certainly  had  expected  a  greater  sum. 

Texas  Jack  and  myself  longed-  for  a  hunt  on  the  Western 
prairies  once  more ;  and  on  meeting  in  New  York  a  party 
of  gentlemen  who  were  desirous  of  going  with  us,  we  all 
started  Westward,  and  after  a  pleasant  trip  arrived  at  Fort 
McPherson. 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

STARRING. 

niEXAS  JACK  and  I  spent  several  weeks  in  hunting  in 
JL  the  western  part  of  Nebraska,  and  at  the  end  of  our 
vacation  we  felt  greatly  re-invigorated  and  ready  for  another 
theatrical  campaign.  We  accordingly  proceeded  to  New 
York  anci  organized  a  company  for  the  season  of  1873-74. 
Thinking  that  Wild  Bill  would  be  quite  an  acquisition  to 
the  troupe,  we  wrote  to  him  at  Springfield,  Missouri,  offer- 
ing him  a  large  salary  if  he  would  play  with  us  that  winter. 
Pie  was  doing  nothing  at  the  time,  and  we  thought  that  he 
would  like  to  take  a  trip  through  the  States,  as  he  had  never 
been  East. 

Wild  Bill  accepted  our  offer,  and  came  on  to  New  York ; 
though  he  told  us  from  the  start  that  we  could  never  make 
an  actor  out  of  him.  Although  he  had  a  fine  stasje  appear- 
ance and  was  a  handsome  fellow,  and  possessed  a  good 
strong  voice,  yet  when  he  went  upon  the  stage  before  an 
audience,  it  was  almost  impossible  for  him  to  utter  a  word. 
He  insisted  that  we  were  making  a  set  of  fools  of  ourselves, 
and  that  we  were  the  laughing-stock  of  the  people.  I  re- 
plied that  I  did  not  care  for  that,  as  long  as  they  came  and 
bought  tickets  to  pee  us. 

Wild  Bill  was  continually  playing  tricks  upon  the  mem- 
bers of  the  company,  and  it  was  his  especial  delight  to  tor- 

?,29 


330  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

ment  the  u  supers."  Quite  frequently  in  our  sham  Indian 
battles  he  would  run  up  to  the  "Indians"  (the  supers),  and 
putting  his  pistol  close  to  their  legs,  would  fire  at  them  and 
burn  them  with  the  powder,  instead  of  shooting  over  their 
heads.  This  would  make  them  dance  and  jump,  so  that  it 
was  difficult  to  make  them  fall  and  die — although  they  were 
paid  twenty-five  cents  each  for  performing  the  "  dying  busi- 
ness." The  poor  "supers"  often  complained  to  me  about 
this,  and  threatened  not  to  go  on  the  stage  and  be  killed 
again  if  that  man  Wild  Bill  did  not  stop  shooting  and  burn- 
ing their  legs.  I  would  order  Wild  Bill  to  stop  his  mischief; 
he  would  laugh  and  then  promise  not  to  do  it  any  more. 
But  it  would  not  be  long  before  he  was  at  his  old  tricks 
again. 

My  company,  known  as  the  "  Buffalo  Bill  Combination,"' 
did  a  fine  business,  all  through  the  East.  Wild  Bill  con- 
tinued his  pranks,  which  caused  us  considerable  annoyance, 
but  at  the  same  time  greatly  amused  us.  • 

One  day  at  Titusville,  Pennsylvania,  while  Burke,  the 
business  agent,  was  registering  our  names  and  making 
arrangements  for  our  accommodation,  several  of  us  started 
for  the  billiard  room  ;  but  were  met  by  the  landlord,  who 
stopped  me  and  said  that  there  was  a  party  of  roughs  from 
the  lower  oil  region  who  were  spreeing,  and  had  boasted  that 
they  were  staying  in  town  to  meet  the  Buffalo  Bill  gang  and 
clean  them  out.  The  landlord  begged  of  me  not  to  allow 
the  members  of  the  troupe  to  enter  the  billiard  room.,  as  he 
did  not  wish  any  fight  in  his  house.  To  please  the  landlord, 
and  at  his  suggestion,  I  called  the  boys  up  into  the  parlor 
and  explained  to  them  the  situation.  Wild  Bill  wanted  to 
go  at  once  and  fight  the  whole  mob,  but  I  persuaded  him  to 
keep  away  from  them  during  the  day. 

In  order  to  entirely  avoid  the  roughs,  the  members  of  the 
company  entered  the  theater  through  a  private  door  from 
the  hotel,  as  the  two  buildings  joined  each  other.  While  I 
was  standing  at  the  door  of  the  theater  taking  the  tickets, 


WILD  BILL  ON  HIS  MUSCLE.  331 

the  landlord  of  the  hotel  came  rushing  up  and  said  that 
Wild  Bill  was  having  a  fight  with  the  roughs  in  the  bar- 
room. It  seemed  that  Bill  had  not  been  able  to  resist  the 
temptation  of  going  to  see  what  kind  of  a  mob  it  was  that 
wanted  to  test  the  pluck  of  the  Buffalo  Bill  party  ;  and  just 
as  he  stepped  into  the  room,  one  of  the  bruisers  put  his  hand 
on  his  shoulder  and  said  : 

"  Hello,  Buffalo  Bill !  we  have  been  looking  for  you  all 
day." 

uMy  name  is  not  Buffalo  Bill;  you  are  mistaken  in  the 
man,"  was  the  reply. 

"  You  are  a  liar  !  "  said  the  bruiser. 

Bill  instantly  knocked  him  down,  and  then  seizing  a  chair 
he  laid  out  four  or  five  of  the  crowd  on  the  floor,  and  drove 
the  rest  out  of  the  room.  All  this  was  done  in  a  minute  or 
two,  and  by  the  time  1  got  down  stairs,  Bill  was  coming  out 
of  the  bar-room,  whistling  a  lively  tune. 

"  Well ! "  said  he,  "  I  have  been  interviewing  that  party 
who  wanted  to  clean  us  out." 

"  I  thought  you  promised  to  come  into  the  Opera  House 
by  the  private  entrance  ?  " 

"  I  did  try  to  follow  that  trail,  but  I  got  lost  among  the 
canons,  and  then  I  ran  in  among  the  hostiles,"  said  he ; 
"but  it  is  all  right  now.  They  won't  bother  us  any  more. 
I  guess  those  fellows  have  found  us."  And  sure  enough 
they  had.  We  heard  no  more  of  them  after  that. 

Another  incident  occurred,  one  night,  at  Portland,  Maine. 
Bill  found  it  impossible  to  go  to  sleep  at  the  hotel  on  account 
of  the  continued  talking  of  some  parties  who  were  engaged 
in  a  game  of  cards  in  an  adjoining  room.  He  called  to  them 
several  times  to  make  less  noise,  but  they  paid  little  or  no 
attention  to  him.  He  finally  got  up  and  went  to  the  room 
with  the  intention  of  cleaning  out  the  whole  crowd.  He 
knocked  and  was  admitted  ;  greatly  to  his  surprise,  he  found 
the  party  to  be  some  merchants  of  the  city,  whom  he  had 
met  the  previous  day.  They  were  playing  poker,  and  invited 


332 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


him  to  take  a  hand.  Bill  sat  down  at  the  table,  and  said 
that,  inasmuch  as  they  would  not  let  him  sleep,  he  wouldn't 
mind  playing  for  a  while,  provided  they  would  post  him  a 
little  in  the  game,  for  he  "didn't  know  much  about  it.  At 
first  he  didn't  play  very  well,  intentionally  making  many 
blunders  and  asking  numerous  questions  ;  but  when  morning 
came,  he  was  about  seven  hundred  dollars  ahead.  Bill  put 
the  money  in  his  pocket,  and  just  as  he  WHS  leaving  the 
•I 


LEARNING   THE   GAME. 


room  he  advised  them   never  to  wake  a  man  up  and  invite 
him  to  play  poker. 

Wild  Bill  remained  with  me  until  we  reached  Rochester. 
I  met  my  family  there,  and  having  bought  some  property  in 
that  city,  with  the  intention  of  making  the  place  my  home, 
I  asked  Bill  not  to  cut  up  any  of  his  capers,  for  I  wanted 
the  performance  to  go  off  smoothly,  as  I  expected  a  large 
audience  that  evening.  He,  of  course,  promised  to  behave 
himself.  When  the  curtain  rose  the  house  was  crowded. 


WILD  BILL  LEAVES  THE  TROUPE.  33$ 

The  play  proceeded  finely  until  the  Indian  fight  in  the  sec- 
ond act,  when  Bill  amused  himself  by  his  old  trick  of  singe- 
ing the  legs  of  the  "  supers." 

After  the  curtain  dropped,  the  "  supers "  complained  to- 
me about  it.  Bill's  conduct  made  me  angry,  and  I  told  him 
that  he  must  either  stop  shooting  the  "  supers,"  or  leave  the 
company.  He  made  no  reply,  but  wen't  to  the  dressing-room 
and  changed  his  buckskin  suit  for  his  citizen's  dress,  and 
during  one  of  my  scenes  I  looked  down  in  front  and  saw 
him  elbowing  his  way  through  the  audience  and  out  of  the 
theater.  When  I  had  finished  the  scene,  and  had  retired 
from  the  stage,  the  stage-carpenter  came  up  and  said: 

"  That  long-haired  gentleman,  who  passed  out  a  few  min- 
utes ago,  requested  me  to  tell  you  that  you  could  go  to» 
thunder  with  your  old  show." 

That  was  the  last  time  that  Wild  Bill  and  I  ever  per- 
formed together  on  the  stage.  After  the  evening's  enter- 
tainment I  met  him  at  the  Osborn  House.  By  this  time  he 
had  recovered  from  his  mad  fit  and  was  in  as  good  humor  as 
ever.  He  had  made  up  his  mind  to  leave  for  the  West  the 
next  day.  I  endeavored  to  persuade  him  to  remain  with 
me  till  spring,  and  then  we  would  go  together ;  but  it  was 
of  no  use.  I  then  paid  him  the  money  due  him,  and  Jack 
and  myself  made  him  a  present  of  $1 ,000  besides. 

Bill  went  to  New  York  the  next  day,  intending  to  start 
west  from  there.  Several  days  afterwards  I  learned  that  he 
had  lost  all  his  money  in  New  York  by  playing  f  aro  ;  also  that 
a  theatrical  manager  had  engaged  him  to  play.  A  company 
was  organized  and  started  out,  but  as  a  "  star  "  Wild  Bill 
was  not  a  success;  the  further  he  went  the  poorer  he 
got.  This  didn't  suit  Bill  by  any  means,  and  he  accordingly 
retired  from  the  stage.  The  company,  however,  kept  on  the 
road,  using  Bill's  name,  and  employing  an  actor  to  repre- 
sent him  not  only  on  the  stage  but  on  the  street  and  else- 
where. Bill  heard  of  this  deception  and  sent  word  to  the 
manager  to  stop  it,  but  no  attention  was  paid  to  his  message, 


334: 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


Finally,  Bill  resolved  to  have  satisfaction  and  lie  pro- 
ceeded to  a  town  where  the  company  was  to  play ;  lie  entered 
the  theater  and  took  a  seat  near  the  stage,  and  watched  the 
performance  until  the  bogus  Wild  Bill  appeared.  He  then 
sprang  upon  the  stage,  knocked  the  actor  clear  through  one 
of  the  scenes,  and  grabbing  the  manager  by  the  shoulders  he 
threw  him  over  the  foot-lights  into  the  orchestra.  The 
other  actors  screamed  and  yelled  "  Police  !  "  The  audience 


GETTING    SATISFACTION. 

could  not  at  first  understand  what  it  all  meant,  some  of  them 
supposing  the  affair  to  be  a  part  of  the  play. 

Wild  Bill  retired  from  the  stage  in  good  order,  resumed 
his  seat,  and  told  them  to  go  on  with  their  show.  A  police- 
man now  appearing,  Bill  was  pointed  out  as  the  disturber 
of  the  peace ;  the  officer  tapping  him  on  the  shoulder,  said : 

"I'll  have  to  arrest  you,  sir." 

"  How  many  of  you  are  there  ? "  asked  Bill. 

"  Only  myself,"  said  the  policeman. 


PAYING  A  FINE.  335 

"  You  had  better  get  some  help,"  said  Bill.  The  officer 
then  called  up  another  policeman,  and  Bill  again  asked : 

"  How  many  of  you  are  there  now  ?  " 

"  Two,"  was-  the  reply. 

"Then  1  advise  you  to  go  out  and  get  some  more  rein- 
forcements," said  Bill,  very  coolly. 

The  policemen  thereupon  spoke  to  the  sheriff,  who  was 
dressed  in  citizen's  clothes.  The  sheriff  came  up  and  said 
he  would  have  to  take  him  into  custody. 

"  All  right,  sir,"  replied  Bill,  "  I  have  no  objections  to 
walking  out  with  you,  but  I  won't  go  with  any  two  police- 
men." At  the  court  next  morning  Bill  stated  his  reasons  for 
having  acted  as  he  had  done,  and  the  judge  fined  him  only 
three  dollars  and  costs. 

This  was  the  last  time  that  Wild  Bill  appeared  on  the 
stage.  He  shortly  afterwards  returned  to  the  West,  and  on 
arriving  at  Cheyenne,  he  visited  Boulder's  gambling  room 
and  sat  down  at  a  faro  table.  "No  one  in  the  room  recog- 
nized him,  as  he  had  not  been  in  Cheyenne  for  several  years. 
After  losing  two  or  three  bets  he  threw  down  a  fifty  dollar  bill 
and  lost  that  also.  Boulder  quietly  raked  in  the  money.  Bill 
placed  a  second  fifty  dollar  note  on  another  card,  when 
Boulder  informed  him  that  the  limit  was  twenty-five  dollars. 

"  You  have-  just  taken  in  a  fifty  dollar  bill  which  I  lost," 
said  Bill. 

"  Well  you  needn't  make  any  more  such  bets,  as  I  will  not 
go  above  my  limit,"  replied  Boulder. 

"  I'll  just  play  that  fifty  dollar  bill  as  it  lays.  If  it  loses, 
it's  yours ;  if  it  wins,  you'll  pay  me  fifty  dollars,  or  I'll  know 
the  reason  why." 

"  I  am  running  this  game,  and  I  want  no  talk  from  you, 
sir,"  said  Boulder. 

One  word   brought  on  another,  until  Boulder  threatened 

to  have  Bill  put  out  of  the  house.     Bill  Was  carrying  the 

butt  end  of  a  billiard  cue  for  a  cane,  and  bending  over  the 

table,  he  said  :  "  You'd  rob  a  blind  man."    Then  he  suddenly 

20 


336  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

tapped  Boulder  on  the  head  with  the^cane,  with  such  force 
as  to  knock  him  over.  With  another  sweep  of  the  cane  he 
tumbled  the  "  look-out "  from  his  chair,  and  then  reaching 
over  into  the  money  drawer  he  grabbed  a  handful  of  green- 
backs and  stuck  them  in  his  pocket. 

At  this  stage  of  the  game  four  or  five  men — who  were 
employed  as  "  bouncers"  for  the  establishment  to  throw  out 
the  noisy  persons — rushed  up  to  capture  Bill,  but  he  knocked 
them  right  and  left  with  his  cane,  and  seeing  the  whole 
crowd  was  now  closing  in  on  him,  he  jumped  into  a  corner, 
and  with  each  hand  drew  a  revolver  and  faced  the  enemy. 
At  this  moment  the  bar-keeper  recognized  him,  and  sang  out 
in  a  loud  voice  : 

"  Look  out  boys — that's  "Wild  Bill  you've  run  against." 

That  settled  the  matter;  for  when  they  heard  the  name 
of  Wild  Bill  they  turned  and  beat  a  hasty  retreat  out  of  the 
doors  and  windows,  and  in  less  time  than  it  takes  to  tell  itr 
Wild  Bill  was  the  only  man  in  the  room.  He  coolly  walked 
over  to  Dyer's  hotel,  and  retired  for  the  night.  Buulder 
claimed  that  he  had  taken  §500,  but  he  really  got  only  $200. 
Boulder,  upon  learning  that  it  was  Wild  Bill  who  had 
cleaned  him  out,  said  nothing  more  about  the  money.  The 
next  day  the  two  men  met  over  a  bottle  of  wine,  and  settled 
their  differences  in  an  amicable  manner. 

Poor  Bill  was  afterwards  killed  at  Deadwood,  in  the  Black 
Hills,  in  a  cowardly  manner,  by  a  desperado  who  sneaked 
up  behind  him  while  he  was  playing  a  game  of  cards  in  a 
saloon,  and  shot  him  through  the  back  of  the  head,  without 
the  least  provocation.  The  murderer,  Jack  McCall,  was 
tried  and  hung  at  Yarikton,  Dakotah,  for  the  crime.  Thus 
ended  the  career  of  a  life-long  friend  of  mine  who,  in  spite 
of  liis  many  faults,  was  a  noble  man,  ever  brave  and  gen- 
erous hearted. 

Jack  and  myself  continued  playing  through  the  country 
after  Wild  Bill  left  us,  and  we  finally  closed  our  season  in 
Boston  on  the  13th  of  May,  1874. 


A  HUNT  WITH  MR.  MEDLEY.  337 

Business  called  me  from  Boston  to  New  York,  and  after 
I  had  been  there  a  few  days,  I  met  an  English  gentleman, 
Thomas  P.  Medley,  of  London,  who  had  come  to  America 
for  a  hunt  on  the  Plains.  He  had  often  heard  of  me,  and 
was  anxious  to  engage  rne  as  his  guide  and  companion,  and 
he  offered  to  pay  the  liberal  salary  of  one  thousand  dollars 
a  month  while  I  was  with  him.  He  was  a  very  wealthy 
man,  as  I  learned  upon  inquiry,  and  was  a  relative  of  Mr. 
Lord,  of  the  firm  of  Lord  &  Taylor,  of  New  York.  Of 
course  I  accepted  his  offer. 

"When  we  reached  the  hunting  ground  in  Nebraska,  lie 
informed  me,  somewhat  to  my  surprise,  that  he  did  not  want 
to  go  out  as  Alexis  did,  with  carriages,  servants,  and  other 
luxuries,  but  that  he  wished  to  rough  it  just  as  I  would  do 
— to  sleep  on  the  ground  in  the  open  air,  and  kill  and  cook 
his  own  meat.  We  started  out  from  North  Platte,  and  spent 
several  weeks  in  hunting  all  over  the  country.  Dr.  W.  F. 
Carver,  who  then  resided  at  North  Platte,  and  who  has 
recently  acquired  considerable  notoriety  as  a  rifle-shot, 
hunted  with  us  for  a  few  days. 

Mr.  Medley  proved  to  be  a  very  agreeable  gentleman  and 
an  excellent  hunter.  While  in  camp  he  busied  himself  in 
carrying  wood  and  water,  attending  to  the  tire,  and  prepar- 
ing and  cooking  the  meals,  never  asking  me  to  do  a  thing. 
He  did  not  do  this  to  save  expenses,  but  because  he  wanted 
to  do  as  the  other  hunters  in  the  party  were  doing.  After 
spending  as  much  time  as  he  wished,  we  returned  to  the 
railroad,  and  he  took  the  train  for  the  East.  Everything  that 
was  required  on  this  hunt  was  paid  for  in  the  most  liberal 
manner  by  Mr.  Medley,  who  also  gave  the  members  of  the 
party  several  handsome  presents. 

About  this  time  an  expedition  consisting  of  seven  com- 
panies of  cavalry  and  two  companies  of  infantry — to  be 
commanded  by  Colonel  Mills  of  the  Third  Cavalry,  was 
being  organized  to  scout  the  Powder  River  and  Big  Horn 
country,  and  I  was  employed  as  guide  for  the  command. 


338  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

Proceeding  to  Hawlins,  "Wyoming,  we  "  outfitted,"  and  other 
guides  were  engaged — among  them  Tom  Sun  and  Bony 
Ernest,  two  noted  .Rocky  Mountain  scouts.  We  there  left 
the  railroad,  and  passing  through  the  Seminole  range  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains  we  established  our  supply  camp  at  the 
foot  of  Independence  Hock  on  the  Sweetwater.  I  was  now 
on  my  old  familiar  stamping  ground,  and  it  seemed  like 
home  to  me.  Fifteen  years  before,  I  had  ridden  the  pony 
express  and  driven  the  overland  stages  through  this  region, 
and  the  command  was  going  into  the  same  section  of  country 
where  Wild  Bill's  expedition  of  stage-drivers  and  express- 
riders  had  recaptured  from  the  Indians  a  large  number  of 
stolen  stage-horses. 

Leaving  the  infantry  to  guard  the  supply  camp,  Colonel 
Mills  struck  out  for  the  north  with  the  seven  companies  of 
cavalry.  One  day  while  we  were  resting  on  a  prairie  near 
the  head  of  powder  river,  a  horseman  was  seen  in  the  dis- 
tance approaching  us.  At  first  it  was  thought  he  was 
an  Indian,  but  as  he  came  near  we  saw  that  he  was  a  white 
man,  and  finally  when  he  rode  up  to  us,  I  recognized  him  as 
"  California  Joe,"  a  noted  scout  and  frontiersman  who  had 
spent  many  years  in  California,  on  the  plains  and  in  the 
mountains.  He  was  rmed  with  a  heavy  old  Sharpe's  rifle, 
a  revolver  and  a  knife.  I  introduced  him  to  Colonel  Mills 
and  the  other  officers  and  asked  him  where  he  was  going. 
He  replied  that  he  was  out  for  a  morning  ride  only  ;  but  the 
fact  was  that  he  had  been  out  prospecting  alone  for  weeks 
along  the  foot  of  the  Big  Horn  mountains. 

Having  no  permanent  occupation  just  at  that  time,  Joe 
accompanied  us  for  two  or  three  days,  when  Colonel  Mills 
suggested  that  I  had  better  employ  him  as  a  scout,  so  that 
he  could  make  a  little  money  for  himself.  Joe  didn't  seem 
to  care  whether  I  hired  him  or  not ;  but  I  put  him  on  the 
pay-roll,  and  while  he  was  with  us  he  drew  his  five  dollars 
a  day.  It  was  worth  the  money  to  have  him  along  for  com- 
pany's sake,  for  he  was  a  droll  character  in  his  way,  and 


THE  LEATH  OF  MY  SON.  339 

afforded  ns  considerable  amusement.  We  finally  surprised 
Little  Wolf's  band  of  Arapahoes  and  drove  them  into  the 
agencies.  We  then  scouted  the  Powder  river,  Crazy 
Woman's  Fork,  and  Clear  Fork,  and  then  pushed  westward 
through  the  mountains  to  the  Wind  river.  After  having 
been  out  for  a  month  or  two  we  were  ordered  to  return. 

I  immediately  went  East  and  organized  another  [Dramatic 
company  for  the  season  of  1874-75,  Texas  Jack  being  absent 
in  the  Yellowstone  country  hunting  with  the  Earl  of  Dun- 
raven.  I  played  my  company  in  all  the  principal  cities  of 
the  country,  doing  a  good  business  wherever  I  went.  The 
summer  of  1875  I  spent  at  Rochester  with  my  family. 

For  the  season  of  1875-6,  Texas  Jack  and  I  reorganized 
our  old  Combination,  and  made  a  very  successful  tour. 
While  we  were  playing  at  Springfield,  Massachusetts,  April 
20th  and  21st  1876,  a  telegram  was  handed  me  just  a3  I  was 
going  on  the  stage.  I  opened  it  and  found  it  to  be  from 
Colonel  Gr.  W.  Torrence,  of  Rochester,  an  intimate  friend 
of  the  family,  who  stated  that  my  little  boy  Kit  was  danger- 
ously ill  with  the  scarlet  fever.  This  was  indeed  sad  news, 
for  little  Kit  had  always  been  my  greatest  pride.  I  sent  for 
John  Burke,  our  business  manager,  and  showing  him  the 
telegram,  told  him  'that  I  would  play  the  first  act,  and 
making  a  proper  excuse  to  the  audience,  I  would  then  take 
the  nine  o'clock  train  that  same  evening  for  Rochester,  leav- 
ing him  to  play  out  my  part.  This  I  did,  and  at  ten  o'clock 
the  next  morning  I  arrived  in  Rochester,  and  was  met  at 
the  depot  by  my  intimate  friend  Moses  Kerngood  who  at 
once  drove  me  to  my  home.  I  found  my  little  boy  unable 
to  speak  but  he  seemed  to  recognize  me  and  putting  his  little 
arms  around  my  neck  he  tried  to  kiss  me.  We  did  every- 
thing in  our  power  to  save  him,  but  it  was  of  no  avail.  The 
Lord  claimed  his  own,  and  that  evening  at  six  o'clock  my 
beloved  little  Kit  died  in  my  arms.  We  laid  him  away  to 
rest  in  the  beautiful  cemetery  of  Mount  Hope  amid  sorrow 
and  tears. 


CHAPTER  XXX. 

I    RETURN    TO    THE    PLAIN? . 

WE  closed  our  theatrical  season  earlier  than  usual  in  the 
spring  of  18T6,  because  I  was  anxious  to  take  part  in 
the  Sioux  war  which  was  then  breaking  out.  Colonel  Mills 
had  written  me  several  letters  saying  that  General  Crook 
was  anxious  to  have  me  accompany  his  "command,  and  I 
promised  to  do  so,  intending  to  overtake  him  in  the  Powder 
river  country.  But  when  I  arrived  at  Chicago,  on  my  way 
West,  I  learned  that  my  old  regiment,  the  gallant  Fifth  Cav- 
alry, was  on  its  way  back  from  Arizona  to  join  General 
Crook,  and  that  my  old  commander,  General  Carr,  was  in 
command.  He  had  written  to  military  headquarters  at  Chi- 
cago to  learn  my  whereabouts,  as  he  wished  to  secure  me  as 
his  guide  and  chief  of  scouts.  I  then  gave  up  the  idea  of 
overtaking  General  Crook,  and  hastening  on  to  Cheyenne, 
where  the  Fifth  Cavalry  had  already  arrived,  I  was  met  at 
the  depot  by  Lieutenant  King,  adjutant  of  the  regiment,  he 
having  been  sent  down  from  Fort  D.  A.  Russell  for  that 
purpose  by  General  Carr,  who  had  learned  by  a  telegram 
from  military  headquarters  at  Chicago  that  I  was  on  the 
way.  I  accompanied  the  Lieutenant  on  horseback  to  the 
camp,  and  as  we  rode  up,  one  of  the  boys  shouted,  "  Here's 
Buffalo  Bill ! "  Soon  after  there  came  three  hearty  cheers 
from  the  regiment.  Officers  and  men  all  were  glad  to  see 

340 


WITH  THE  FIFTH  CAVALRY  AGAIN.  341 

me,  and  I  was  equally  delighted  to  meet  them  once  more. 
The  General  at  once  appointed  me  his  guide  and  chief  of 
scouts. 

The  next  morning  the  command  pulled  out  for  Fort  Lar- 
amie,  and  on  reaching  that  post  we  found  General  Sheridan 
there,  accompanied  by  General  Frje  and  General  Forsyth, 
<en  route  to  Red  Cloud  agency.  As  the  command  was  to 
remain  here  a  few  days,  I  accompanied  General  Sheridan  to 
Hed  Cloud  and  back,  taking  a  company  of  cavalry  as  escort. 

The  Indians  having  recently  committed  a  great  many 
depredations  on  the  Black  Hills  road,  the  Fifth  Cavalry  was 
•sent  out  to  scout  the  country  between  the  Indian  agencies 
and  the  hills.  The  command  operated  on  the  South  Fork 
of  the  Cheyenne  and  at  the  foot  of  the  Black  Hills  for  about 
two  weeks,  having  several  small  engagements  with  roving 
bands  of  Indians  during  the  time.  General  Wesley  Merritt 
— who  had  lately  received  his  promotion  to  the  Colo- 
nelcy of  the  Fifth  Cavalry — now  came  out  and  took  control 
of  the  regiment.  I  was  sorry  that  the  command  was  taken 
from  General  Carr,  because  under  him  it:  had  made  its  fight- 
ing reputation.  However,  upon  becoming  acquainted  with 
"General  Merritt,  I  found  him  to  be  an  excellent  officer. 

The  regiment,  by  continued  scouting,  soon  drove  the 
Indians  out  of  that  section  of  the  country,  as  we  supposed, 
and  we  had  started  on  our  way  back  to  Fort  Laramie,  when 
a  scout  arrived  at  the  camp  and  reported  the  massacre  of 
General  Custer  and  his  band  of  heroes  on  the  Little  Big 
Horn,  on  the  25th  of  June,  1876 ;  and  he  also  brought 
orders  to  General  Merritt  to  proceed  at  once  to  Fort  Fetter- 
man  and  join  General  Crook  in  the  Big  Horn  country. 

Colonel  Stanton,  who  was  with  the  Fifth  Cavalry  on  this 
scout,  had  been  sent  to  Red  Cloud  agency  two  days  before, 
and  that  same  evening  a  scout  arrived  bringing  ji  message 
from  him  that  eight  hundred  Cheyenne  warriors  had  that 
day  left  the  Red  Cloud  agency  to  join  Sitting  Bull's  hostile 
forces  in  the  Big  Horn  region.  Notwithstanding  the  in- 


34:2  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

structions  to  proceed  immediately  to  join  General  Crook  by 
the  way  of  Fort  Fetterman,  Colonel  Merritt  took  the  respon- 
sibility of  endeavoring  to  intercept  the  Cheyennes,  and  as 
the  sequel  shows  he  performed  a  very  important  service. 

He  selected  iive  hundred  men  and  horses,  and  in  two 
hours  we  were  making  a  forced  march  back  to  Hat,  or  War- 
Bonnet  Creek — the  intention  being  to  reach  the  main  Indian 
trail  running  to  the  north  across  that  creek  before  the  Chey- 
ennes could  get  there.  We  arrived  there  the  next  night, 
and  at  daylight  the  following  morning,  July  17th,  1876,  I 
went  out  on  a  scout,  and  found  that  the  Indians  had  not  yet 
crossed  the  creek.  On  my  way  back  to  the  command  I  dis- 
covered a 'large  party  of  Indians,  which  proved  to  be  the 
Cheyennes,  coming  up  from  the  south,  and  I  hurried  to  the 
camp  with  this  important  information. 

The  cavalrymen  quietly  mounted  their  horses,  and  were 
ordered  to  remain  out  of  sight,  while  General  Merritt,  ac- 
companied by  two  or  three  aides  and  myself,  went  out  on  a 
little  tour  of  observation  to  a  neighboring  hill,  from  the 
summit  of  which  we  saw  that  the  Indians  were  approaching 
almost  directly  towards  us.  Presently  fifteen  or  twenty  of 
them  dashed  off  to  the  west  in  the  direction  from  which  we 
had  come  the  night  before;  and  upon  closer  observation 
with  our  field  glasses,  we  discovered  two  mounted  soldiers, 
evidently  carrying  dispatches  for  us,  pushing  forward  on 
our  trail. 

The  Indians  were  evidently  endeavoring  to  intercept  these 
two  men,  and  General  Merritt  feared  that  they  would  ac- 
complish their  object.  He  did  not  think  it  advisable  to  send 
out  any  soldiers  to.  the  assistance  of  the  couriers,  for  fear 
that  would  show  to  the  Indians  that  there  were  troops 
in  the  vicinity  who  were  waiting  for  them.  I  finally  sug- 
gested that  the  best  plan  was  to  wait  until  the  couriers  came 
closer  to  the  command,  and  then,  just  as  the  Indians  were 
about  to  charge,  to  let  me  take  the  scouts  and  cut  them  off 
from  the  main  body  of  the  Cheyennes,  who  were  coming 
over  the  divide. 


MY  FIGHT  WITH  YELLOW-HAND.  34.3 

"  All  right,  Cody,"  said  the  General,  "  if  you  can  do  that,. 
go  ahead.'7 

I  rushed  back  to  the  command,  jumped  on  my  horse,, 
picked  out  fifteen  men,  and  returned  with  them  to  the  point 
of  observation.  I  told  General  Merritt  to  give  us  the  word 
to  start  out  at  the  proper  time,  and  presently  he  sang  out : 

"  Go  in  now,  Cody,  and  be  quick  about  it.  They  are 
going  to  charge  on  the  couriers." 

The  two  messengers  were  not  over  four  hundred  yard& 
from  us,  and  the  Indians  were  only  about  two  hundred 
yards  behind  them.  We  instantly  dashed  over  the  bluffs, 
and  advanced  on  a  gallop  towards  the  Indians.  A  running- 
fight  lasted  several  minutes,  during  which  we  drove  the 
enemy  some  little  distance  and  killed  three  of  their  number. 
The  rest  of  them  rode  off  towards  the  main  body,  which  had 
come  into  plain  sight,  and  halted,  upon  seeing  the  skirmish 
that  was  going  on.  We  were  about  half  a  mile  from  Gen- 
eral Merritt,  and  the  Indians  whom  we  were  chasing  sud- 
denly turned  upon  us,  and  another  lively  skirmish  took 
place.  One  of  the  Indians,  who  was  handsomely  decorated 
with  all  the  ornaments  usually  worn  by  a  war  chief  when 
engaged  in  a  fight,  sang  out  to  me,  in  his  own  tongue  : 

"  I  know  you,  Pa-he-haska ;  if  you  want  to  fight,  come 
ahead  and  fight  me." 

The  chief  was  riding  his  horse  back  and  forth  in  front  of 
his  men,  as  if  to  banter  me,  and  I  concluded  to  accept  the 
challenge.  I  galloped  towards  him  for  fifty  yards  and  he 
advanced  towards  me  about  the  same  distance,  both  of  us 
riding  at  full  speed,  and  then,  when  we 'were  only  about 
thirty  yards  apart,  I  raised  my  rifle  and  fired ;  his  horse  fell 
to  the  ground,  having  been  killed  by  my  bullet. 

Almost  at  the  same  instant  my  own  horse  went  down,  he 
having  stepped  into  a  hole.  The  fall  did  not  hurt  me  much, 
and  I  instantly  sprang  to  my  feet.  The  Indian  had  alsa 
recovered  himself,  and  we  were  now  both  on  foot,  and  not 
more  than  twenty  paces  apart.  We  fired  at  each  other 


34:4:  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

simultaneously.  My  usual  luck  did  not  desert  me  on  this 
occasion,  for  his  bullet  missed  me,  while  mine  struck  him  in 
the  breast.  He  reeled  and  fell,  but  before  he  had  fairly 
touched  the  ground  I  was  upon  him,  knife  in  hand,  and  had 
driven  the  keen-edged  weapon  to  its  hilt  in  his  heart.  Jerk- 
ing his  war-bonnet  off,  I  scientifically  scalped  him  in  about 
five  seconds. 

The  whole  affair  from  beginning  to  end  occupied  but  little 
time,  and  the  Indians,  seeing  that  I  was  some  little  distance 
from  my  company,  now  came  charging  down  upon  me  from 
Si  hill,  in  hopes  of  cutting  me  off.  General  Merritt  had  wit- 
nessed the  duel,  and  realizing  the  danger  I  was  in,  ordered 
•Colonel  Mason  with  Company  K  to  hurry  to  my  rescue. 
The  order  came  none  too  soon,  for  had  it  been  given  one 
minute  later  I  would  have  had  not  less  than  two  hundred 
Indians  upon  me.  As  the  soldiers  caine  up  I  swung  the 
Indian  chieftain's  top-knot  and  bonnet  in  the  air,  and 
shouted  : 

"  The  first  scalp  for  Ouster" 

General  Merritt,  seeing  that  he  could  not  now  ambush  the 
Indians,  ordered  the  whole  regiment  to  charge  upon  them. 
They  made  a  stubborn  resistance  for  a  little  while,  but  it 
was  of  no  use  for  any  eight  hundred,  or  even  sixteen  hun- 
dred .Indians  to  try  and  check  a  charge  of  the  gallant  old 
Fifth  Cavalry,  and  they  soon  came  to  that  conclusion  and 
"began  a  running  retreat  towards  Red  Cloud  Agency.  For 
thirty-five  miles  we  drove  them  ;  pushing  them  so  hard  that 
they  were  obliged  to  abandon  their  loose  horses,  their  camp 
•equipage  and  everything  else.  We  drove  them  into  the 
agency,  and  followed  in  ourselves,  notwithstanding  the  pos- 
sibility of  our  having  to  encounter  the  thousands  of  Indians 
at  that  point.  We  were  uncertain  whether  or  not  the  other 
agency  Indians  had  determined  to  follow  the  example  of  the 
Cheyennes  and  strike  out  upon  the  war-path ;  but  that 
made  no  difference  with  the  Fifth  Cavalry,  for  they  would 
have  fought  them  all  if  necessary.  It  was  dark  when  we 


A  DUEL  WITH  CHIEF  YELLOW  HAND. 


AFTER  THE  SIOUX.  34.7 

rode  into  the  agency,  where  we  found  thousands  of  Indians 
collected  together;  but  they  manifested  no  disposition  to 

fight. 

While  at  the  agency  I  learned  the  name  of  the  Indian 
Chief  whom  I  had  killed  in  the  morning;  it  was  Yellow 
Hand  ;  a  son  of  old  Cut-nose — a  leading  chief  of  the  Chey- 
ennes.  Cut-nose,  haying  learned  that  I  had  killed  his  son 
sent  a  white  interpreter  to  me  with  a  message  to  the  effect 
that  he  would  give  me  four  mules  if  I  would  turn  over  to 
him  Yellow  Hand's  war-bonnet,  guns,  pistols,  ornaments, 
and  other  paraphernalia  which  I  had  captured.  I  sent  back 
word  to  the  old  gentleman  that  it  would  give  me  pleasure 
to  accommodate  him,  but  I  could  not  do  it  this  time. 

The  next  morning  we  started  to  join  General  Crook,  who 
was  camped  near  the  foot  of  Cloud  Peak  in  the  Big  Horn 
mountains;  awaiting  the  arrival  of  the  Fifth  Cavalry,  before 
proceeding  against  the  Sioux,  who  were  somewhere  near  the 
head  of  the  Little  Big  Horn, — as  his  scouts  informed  him. 
We  made  rapid  marches  and  reached  General  Crook's  camp 
on  Goose  Creek  about  the  3d  of  August. 

At  this  camp  I  met  many  old  friends,  among  whom  was 
Colonel  Royal,  who  had  received  his  promotion  to  the  Lieu- 
tenant Colonelcy  of  the  Third  Cavalry.  He  introduced  me 
to  General  Crook,  whom  I  had  never  met  before,  but  of 
whom  I  had  often  heard.  He  also  introduced  me  to  the 
General's  chief  guide,  Frank  Grouard,  a  half  breed,  who  had 
lived  six  years  with  Sitting  Bull,  and  knew  the  country 
thoroughly. 

We  remained  in  this  camp  only  one  day,  and  then  the 
whole  troop  pulled  out  for  the  Tongue  river,  leaving  our 
wagons  behind,  but  taking  with  us  a  large  pack  train.  We 
inarched  down  the  Tongue  river  for  two  days,  thence  in  a 
westerly  direction  over  to  the  Rosebud,  where  we  struck  the 
main  Indian  trail,  leading  down  this  stream.  From  the  size 
of  the  trail,  which  appeared  to  be  about  four  days  old,  we 
estimated  that  there  must  have  been  in  the  neighborhood  of 
flp.ven  thousand  Indians  who  had  made  the  broad  trail. 


348 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


At  this  point  we  were  overtaken  by  Jack  Crawford, 
familiarly  known  as  "  Captain  Jack,  the  Poet  Scout  of  the 
Black  Hills,"  and  right  here  I  will  insert  the  following  linesr 
written  by  him,  just  after  the  "  Custer  Massacre,"  upon 
receiving  from  me  the  following  dispatch : 

"Jack,  old  boy,  have  you  heard  of  the  death  of  Custer  ?'r 

CUSTER'S  DEATH. 


Did  I  hear  the  news  from  Custer  ? 

Well,  I  reckon  I  did,  old  pard ; 
It  came  like  a  streak  of  lightnin  ', 

And,  you  bet,  it  hit  me  hard. 
I  ain't  no  hand  to  blubber, 

And  the  briny  ain't  run  for  years ; 
But  chalk  me  down  for  a  lubber, 

If  I  didn  t  shed  regular  tears. 


And  I  reckon  ye  know  his  record, 
For  he  was  our  guiding  star ; 

And  the  boys  who  gathered  round  him 
To  charge  in  the  early  morn, 

War  just  like  the  brave  who  perished 
With  him  on  the  Little  Horn. 

And  where  is  the  satisfaction, 

And  how  will  the  boys  get  square? 


What  for  ?     Now  look  you  here,  Bill,  By  giving  the  reds  more  rifles? 


You're  a  bully  boy,  that's  true ; 
As  good  as  e'er  wore  buckskin, 

Or  fought  with  the  boys  in  blue ; 
But  I'll  bet  my  bottom  dollar 

Ye  had  no  trouble  to  muster 
A  tear,  or  perhaps  a  hundred, 

At  the  news  of  the  death  of  Custer. 
He  always  thought  well  of  you,  pard, 


Invite  them  to  take  more  hair? 
!We  want  no  scouts,  no  trappers, 

Nor  men  who  know  the  frontier ; 
Phil,  old  boy,  you're  mistaken, 

We  must  have  the  volunteer. 
Never  mind  that  two  hundred  thousand 

But  give  us  a  hundred  instead  ; 
Send  five  thousand  men  towards  Reno, 


And  had  it  been  heaven's  will, 
In  a  few  more  days  you'd  met  him, 


And  soon  we  won't  leave  a  red. 
lit  will  save  Uncle  Sam  lots  of  money, 

And  he'd  welcome  his  old  scout  Bill.      In  fortress  we  need  not  invest, 
For  if  ye  remember  at  Hat  Creek, 
I  met  ye  with  General  Carr ; 


We  talked  of  the  brave  young  Custer, 

And  recounted  his  deeds  of  war. 
But  little  we  knew  even  then,  pard, 

(Ami  that's  just  two  works  ago), 
How  little  we  dreamed  of  disaster, 

Or  that  he  had  met  the  foe — 
That  the  fearless,  reckless  hero, 

So  loved  by  the  whole  frontier, 
Had  died  on  the  field  of  battle 

In  this,  our  centennial  year. 
I  served  with  him  in  the  army, 

In  the  darkest  days  of  the  war : 


Jest  wollup  the  devils  this  summer, 
And  the  miners  will  do  all  the  rest. 


The  Black  Hills  are  filled  with  miners, 

The  Big  Horn  will  soon  be  as  full, 
And  which  will  show  the  most  danger 

To  Crazy  Horse  and  old  Sitting  Bull 
A  band  of  ten  thousand  frontier  men, 

Or  a  couple  of  forts  with  a  few 
jOf  the  boys  in  the  East  now  enlisting — 

Friend  Cody,  I  leave  it  with  you. 
They  talk  of  peace  with  these  demons 

By  feeding  and  clothing  them  well : 

I'd  as  soon  think  an  angel  from  Heaven 

Would  reign  with  contentment  in  H-l 


COLONEL  JONES'  PRESENT.  349 

And  one  day  the  Quakers  will  answer  That  day  of  the  great  retribution, 


Before  the  great  Judge  of  us  all, 
Eor  the  death  of  daring  young  Custer 

And  the  boys  who  round  him  did  fall- 
Perhaps  I  am  judging  them  harshly, 

But  (  mean  what  I'm  telling  ye,  pard  ; 
I'm  letting  them  down  mighty  easy, 

Perhaps  they  may  think  it  is  hard. 


The  day  of  revenge  for  our  Custer. 
And  I  will  be  with  you,  friend  Cody, 

My  weight  will  go  in  with  the  boys  ; 
I  shared  all  their  hardships  last  winter, 

1  shared  all  their  sorrows  and  joys ; 
Tell  them  I'm  coming,  friend  William, 

I  trust  I  will  meet  you  ere  long; 


But  I  tell  you  the  day  is  approaching — Regards  to  the  boys  in  the  mountains ; 
The  boys  are  beginning  to  muster — ;  Yours,  ever ;  in  friendship  still  strong. 

Jack  was  a  new  man  in  the  country,  but  evidently  had 
plenty  of  nerve  and  pluck,  as  he  had  brought  dispatches 
from  Fort  Fetterman,  a  distance  of  300  miles  through  a 
dangerous  Indian  country.  The  dispatches  were  for  General 
Crook,  and  notified  him  that  General  Terry  was  to  operate 
with  a  large  command  south  of  the  Yellowstone,  arid  that 
the  two  commands  would  probably  consolidate  somewhere 
on  the  Kosebud. 

Jack  at  once  hunted  me  up  and  gave  me  a  letter  from 
General  Sheridan,  informing  me  that  he  had  appointed  him 
(Jack)  as  one  of  the  scouts. 

"While  we  were  conversing,  Jack  informed  me  that  he  had 
brought  me  a  present  from  Colonel  Jones  of  Cheyenne,  and 
that  he  had  it  in  his  saddle-pockets.  Asking  the  nature  of 
the  gift,  he  replied  that  it  was  only  a  bottle  of  good  whiskey. 

I  placed  my  hand  over  his  mouth  and  told  him  to  keep 
still,  and  not  to  whisper  it  even  to  the  winds,  for  there  were 
too  many  dry  men  around  us ;  and  only  when  alone  with 
him  did  I  dare  to  have  him  take  the  treasure  from  his  saddle- 
pockets. 

In  this  connection  I  may  remark  that  Jack  Crawford  is 
the  only  man  I  have  ever  known  that  could  have  brought 
that  bottle  of  whiskey  through  without  accident  befalling  it, 
for  he  is  one  of  the  very  few  teetotal  scouts  I  ever  met. 

Not  wishing  to  have  a  game  of  "  whiskey  solitaire"  I  invited 
General  Carr  to  sample  the  bottle  with  me.  We  soon  found 
a  secluded  spot,  and  dismounting,  we  thought  we  were  going 


350  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

to  have  a  nice  little  drink  all  by  ourselves,  when  who  should 
ride  up  but  Mr.  Lathrop,  the  Reporter  of  the  Associated 
Press  of  the  Pacific  slope — to  whom  we  had  given  the  name 
of  the  "  Death  Rattler," — and  who  was  also  known  in  San 
Francisco  as  "  the  man  with  the  iron  jaw,"  he  having,  with 
the  true  nose  of  a  Reporter,  smelt  the  whiskey  from  afar  off/ 
and  had  come  to  "interview"  it.  He  was  a  good  fellow 
withal,  and  we  were  glad  to  have  him  join  us. 

Now  to  resume  :  For  two  or  three  days  we  pushed  on, 
but  we  did  not  seem  to  gain  much  on  the  Indians,  as  they 
were  evidently  making  about  the  same  marches  that  we 
were.  On  the  fourth  or  fifth  morning  of  our  pursuit,  I 
rode  ahead  of  the  command  about  ten  miles,  and  mounting 
a  hill  I  scanned  the  country  far  and  wide  with  my  field 
glass,  and  discovered  an  immense  column  of  dust  rising 
about  ten  miles  further  down  the  creek,  and  eoon  I  noticed 
a  body  of  men  marching  towards  me,  that  at  first  I  believed 
to  be  the  Indians  of  whom  we  were  in  pursuit ;  but  subse- 
quently they  proved  to  be  General  Terry's  command.  I 
sent  back  word  to  that  effect  to  General  Crook,  by  a  scout 
who  had  accompanied  me,  but  after  he  had  departed  I  ob- 
served a  band  of  Indians  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  creek, 
and  also  another  party  directly  in  front  of  me.  This  led 
me  to  believe  that  I  had  made  a  mistake. 

But  shortly  afterwards  my  attention  was  attracted  by  the 
appearance  of  a  body  of  soldiers,  who  were  forming  into  a 
skirmish  line,  and  then  I  became  convinced  that  it  was  Gen- 
eral Terry's  command  after  all,  and  that  the  red-skins  whom 
I  had  seen  were  some  of  his  friendly  Indian  scouts,  who  had 
mistaken  me  for  a  Sioux,  and  fled  back  to  their  command 
terribly  excited,  shouting,  "  The  Sioux  are  coming  ! " 

General  Terry  at  once  came  to  the  post,  and  ordered  the 
Seventh  Cavalry  to  form  line  of  battle  across  the  Rosebud  ; 
he  also  ordered  up  his  artillery  and  had  them  prepare  for 
action,  doubtless  dreading  another  "  Custer  massacre."  I 
afterwards  learned  the  Indians  had  seen  the  dust  raised  by 


ONE  AGAINST  A  THOUSAND.  351 

General  Crook's  forces,  and  had  reported  that  the  Sioux 
were  coming. 

These  manoeuvres  I  witnessed  from  my  position  with  con- 
siderable amusement,  thinking  the  command  must  be  badly 
demoralized,  when  one  man  could  cause  a  whole  army  to- 
form  line  of  battle  and  prepare  for  action.  Having  enjoyed 
the  situation  to  my  heart's  content,  I  galloped  down  towards 
the  skirmish  line,  waving  my  hat  and  when  within  about 
one  hundred  yards  of  the  troops,  Colonel  Weir,  of  the  Sev- 
enth Cavalry,  galloped  out  and  met  me.  He  recognized  me 
at  once,  and  accompanied  me  inside  the  line;  then  he  sang 
out,  "  Boys,  here's  Buffalo  Bill.  Some  of  you  old  soldiers- 
know  him  ;  give  him  a  cheer!"  Thereupon  the  regiment 
gave  three  rousing  cheers,  and  it  was  followed  up  all  along 
the  line.  % 

Colonel  Weir  presented  me  to  General  Terry,  and  in 
answer  to  his  questions  I  informed  him  that  the  alarm  of 
Indians  which  had  been  given  was  a  false  one,  as  the  dust- 
seen  by  his  scouts  was  caused  by  General  Crook's  troops. 
General  Terry  thereupon  rode  forward  to  meet  General 
Crook,  and  I  accompanied  him  at  his  request.  That  night 
both  commands  went  into  camp  on  the  Rosebud.  General 
Terry  had  his  wagon  train  with  him,  and  everything  to- 
make  life  comfortable  on  an  Indian  campaign.  He  had 
large  wall  tents  and  portable  beds  to  sleep  in,  and  large  hos- 
pital tents  for  dining-rooms.  His  camp  looked  very  com- 
fortable and  attractive,  and  presented  a  great  contrast  to 
that  of  General  Crook,  who  had  for  his  headquarters  only 
one  small  fly  tent ;  and  whose  cooking  utensils  consisted  of 
a  quart  cup — in  which  he  made  his  coffee  himself — and  a 
stick,  upon  which  he  broiled  his  bacon.  When  I  compared 
the  two  camps,  I  came  to  the  conclusion  that  General  Crook 
was  an  Indian  fighter ;  for  it  was  evident  that  he  had  learned 
that,  to  follow  and  fight  Indians,  a  body  of  men  must  travel 
lightly  and  not  be  detained  by  a  wagon  train  or  heavy  lug- 
gage of  any  kind. 


352  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

That  evening  General  Terry  ordered  General  Miles  to 
take  his  regiment,  the  Fifth  Infantry,  and  return  by  a  forced 
inarch  to  the  Yellowstone,  and  proceed  down  that  river  by 
steamboat  to  the  mouth  of  Powder  river,  to  intercept  the 
Indians,  in  case  they  attempted  to  cross  the  Yellowstone. 
General  Mills  made  a  forced  march  that  night  of  thirty-five 
miles,  which  was  splendid  traveling  for  an  infantry  regi- 
ment through  a  mountainous  country. 

Generals  Crook  and  Terry  spent  that  evening  and  the 
next  day  in  council,  and  on  the  following  morning  both 
•commands  moved  out  on  the  Indian  trail.  Although  Gen- 
eral Terry  was  the  senior  officer,  he  did  not  assume  com- 
mand of  both  expeditions,  but  left  General  Crook  in  com- 
mand of  his  own  troops,  although  they  operated  together. 
We  crossed  the  Tongue  river  to  Potvder  river,  and  pro- 
ceeded down  the  latter  stream  to  a  point  twenty  miles  from 
its  junction  with  the  Yellowstone,  where  the  Indian  trail 
turned  to  the  southeast  in  the  direction  of  the  Black  Hills. 
The  two  commands  now  being  nearly  out  of  supplies,  the 
trail  was  abandoned,  and  the  troops  kept  on  down  Powder 
river  to  its  confluence  with  the  Yellowstone,  and  remained 
there  several  days.  Here  we  met  General  Mills,  who  re- 
ported that  no  Indians  had  as  yet  crossed  the  Yellowstone. 
Several  steamboats  soon  arrived  with  a  large  quantity  of 
supplies,  and  once  more  the  u  Boys  in  Blue "  were  made 
happy. 


CHAPTER  XXXI. 

DANGEROUS    WOKK. 

ONE  evening  while  we  were  in  camp  on  the  Yellowstone 
'at  the  mouth  of  Powder  river,  I  was  inionned  that  the 
commanding  officers  had  selected  Louis  Richard,  a  half 
breed,  and  myself  to  accompany  General  Mills  on  a  scout- 
ing expedition  on  the  steamer  Far  West,  down  the  Yellow- 
stone as  far  as  Glendive  Creek.  We  were  to  ride  on  the 
pilot  house  and  keep  a  sharp  lookout  on  both  sides  of  the 
river  for  Indian  trails  that  might  have  crossed  the  stream. 
The  idea  of  scouting  on  a  steamboat  was  indeed  a  novel 
one  to  me,  and  I  anticipated  a  pleasant  trip. 

At  daylight  next  morning  we  reported  on  board  the 
steamer  to  General  Mills,  who  had  with  him  four  or  five 
companies  of  his  regiment.  We  were  somewhat  surprised 
when  he  asked  us  where  our  horses  were,  as  we  had  not  sup- 
posed that  horses  would  be  needed  if  the  scouting  was  to  be 
done  on  the  steamer.  He  said  we  might  need  them  before 
we  got  back,  and  thereupon  we  had  the  animals  brought  on 
board.  In  a  few  minutes  we  were  booming  down  the  river, 
at  the  rate  of  about  twenty  miles  an  hour. 

The  steamer  Far  West  was  commanded  by  Captain  Grant 

Marsh,  whom  I  found  to  be  a  "brick."     I  had  often  heard 

of  him,  for  he  was  and  is  yet  one  of  the  best  known  river 

captains  in  the  country.     He  it  was  who,  with  his  steamer 

21  353 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


the  Far  West,  transported 
the  wounded  men  from  the 
battle  of  the  Little  Big  Horn 
to  Fort  Abraham  Lincoln  on 
the  Missouri  river,  a  n  d  on 
that  trip  he  made  the  fastest 
steamboat  time  on  record . 
He  was  a  skillful  and  experi- 
enced pilot,  handling  his  boat 
with  remarkable  dexterity. 

While  Richard  and  myself 
were  at  our  stations  on  the 
pilot  house,  the  steamer  with 
a  full  head  of  steam  went  fly- 
ing past  islands,  around 
bends,  over  sand-bars,  at  a 
rate  that  was  exhilarating. 
Presently  I  thought  I  could 
see  horses  grazing  in  a  distant 
bend  of  the  river  and  I 
reported  the  fact  t  o  General 
Mills,  who  asked  Captain 
Marsh  if  he  could  land  the 
!  boat  near  a  large  tree  which 
he  pointed  out  to  him. 

SCOUTING  ON  A  STEAMBOAT.  "  Yes,  sir ;  I  can  land  her 

there,  and  make  her  climb  the  tree  if  necessary,"  said  he. 


INDIAN  GRAVES.  355 

On  reaching  the  spot  designated,  General  Mills  ordered 
two  companies  ashore,  while  Richard  and  myself  were 
ordered  to  take  our  horses  off  the  boat  and  push  out  as  rap- 
idly as  possible  to  see  if  there  were  Indians  in  the  vicinity. 
While  we  were  getting  ashore,  Captain  Marsh  remarked  that 
if  there  was  only  a  good  heavy  dew  on  the  grass  he  would 
shoot  the  steamer  ashore  and  take  us  on  the  scout  without 
the  trouble  of  leaving  the  boat. 

It  was  a  false  alarm,  however,  as  the  objects  we  had  seen 
proved  to  be  Indian  graves.  Quite  a  large  number  of  braves 
who  had  probably  been  killed  in  some  battle,  had  been 
buried  on  scaffolds,  according  to  the  Indian  custom,  and  some 
of  their  clothing  had  been  torn  loose  from  the  bodies  by  the 
wolves  and  was  waving  in  the  air. 

On  arriving  at  Glen  dive  Creek  we  founcl  that  Colonel 
Rice  and  his  company  of  the  Fifth  Infantry,  who  had  been 
sent  there  by  General  Mills,  had  built  quite  a  good  little 
fort  with  their  trowel-bayonets — a  weapon  which  Colonel 
Rice  was  the  inventor  of,  and  which  is,  by  the  way,  a  very 
useful  implement  of  war,  as  it  can  be  used  for  a  shovel  in 
throwing  up  intrenchments  and  can  be  profitably  utilized  in 
several  other  ways.  On  the  day  previous  to  our  arrival, 
Colonel  Rice  had  a  tight  with  a  party  of  Indians,  and  had 
killed  two  or  three  of  them  at  long  range  with  his  Rodman 
cannon. 

The  Far  "West  was  to  remain  at  Glendive  over  night,  and 
General  Mills  wished  to  send  dispatches  back  to  General 
Terry  at  once.  At  his  request  I  took  the  dispatches  and 
rode  seventy-five  miles  that  night  through  the  bad  lands  of 
the  Yellowstone,  and  reached  General  Terry's  camp  next 
morning,  after  having  nearly  broken  my  neck  a  dozen  times 
or  more. 

There  being  but  little  prospect  of  any  more  fighting,  I 
determined  to  go  East  as  soon  as  possible  to  organize  a  new 
"Dramatic  Combination,"  and  have  a  new  drama  written  for 
me,  based  upon  the  Sioux  war.  This  I  knew  would  be  a 


356  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

paying  investment  as  the  Sioux  campaign  Lad  excited  consid- 
erable interest.  So  I  started  down  the  river  on  the  steamer 
Yellowstone  en  route  to  Fort  Beauf ord.  On  the  same  morn- 
ing Generals  Terry  and  Crook  pulled  out  for  Powder  river, 
to  take  up  the  old  Indian  trail  which  we  had  recently  left. 

The  steamer  had  proceeded  down  the  stream  about  twenty 
miles  when  it  was  met  by  another  boat  on  its  way  up  the 
river,  having  on  board  General  "Whistler  and  some  fresh 
troops  for  General  Terry's  command.  Both  boats  landed, 
and  almost  the  first  person  I  met  was  my  old  friend  and  part- 
ner, Texas  Jack,  who  had  been  sent  out  as  a  dispatch  carrier 
for  the  New  York  Herald. 

General  Whistler,  upon  learning  that  General  Terry  had 
left  the  Yellowstone,  asked  me  to  carry  to  him  some  import- 
ant dispatches*  from  General  Sheridan,  and  although  I 
objected,  he  insisted  upon  my  performing  this  duty,  saying 
that  it  would  only  detain  me  a  few -hours  longer;  as  an  extra 
inducement  he  offered  me  the  use  of  his  own  thorough-bred 
horse,  which  was  on  the  boat.  I  finally  consented  to  go, 
and  was  soon  speeding  over  the  rough  and  hilly  country 
towards  Powder  river ;  and  I  delivered  the  dispatches  to 
General  Terry  that  same  evening.  General  Whistler's  horse, 
although  a  good  animal,  was  not  used  to  such  hard  riding, 
and  was  far  more  exhausted  by  the  journey  than  I  was. 

After  I  had  taken  a  lunch,  General  Terry  asked  me  if  I 
would  carry  some  dispatches  back  to  General  Whistler,  and 
I  replied  that  I  would.  Captain  Smith,  General  Terry's 
aid-de-camp,  offered  me  his  horse  for  the  trip,  and  it  proved 
to  be  an  excellent  animal ;  for  I  rode  him  that  same  night 
forty  miles  over  the  bad  lands  in  four  hours,  and  reached 
General  Whistler's  steamboat  at  one  o'clock.  During  my 
absence  the  Indians  had  made  their  appearance  on  the  differ- 
ent hills  in  the  vicinity,  and  the  troops  from  the  boat  had 
had  several  skirmishes  with  them.  When  General  Whistler 
had  finished  reading  the  dispatches,  he  said : 

"Cody,  I  want  to  send  information  to  General  Terry  con- 


HARD  RIDING.  357 

cerning  the  Indians  who  have  been  skirmishing  around  here 
all  day.  I  have  been  trying  all  the  evening  long  to  induce 
some  one  to  carry  my  dispatches  to  him,  but  no  one  seems 
willing  to  undertake  the  trip,  and  I  have  got  to  fall  back  on 
you.  It  is  asking  a  great  deal,  I  know,  as  you  have  just  rid- 
den eighty  miles ;  but  it  is  a  case  of  necessity,  and  if  you'll 
go,  Cody,  I'll  see  that  you  are  well  paid  for  it." 

"  Never  mind  about  the  pay,"  said  I,  but  get  your  dis. 
patches  ready,  and  I'll  start  at  once." 

In  a  few  minutes  he  handed  me  the  package,  and  mount- 
ing the  same  horse  which  I  had  ridden  from  General  Terry's 
camp,  I  struck  out  for  my  destination.  It  was  two  o'clock 
in  the  morning  when  I  left  the  boat,  and  at  eight  o'clock  I 
rode  into  General  Terry's  camp,  just  as  he  was  about  to 
march — having  made  one  hundred  and  twenty  miles  in  twen- 
ty-two hours. 

General  Terry,  after  reading  the  dispatches,  halted  Ins 
command,  and  then  rode  on  and  overtook  General  Crook, 
with  whom  he  held  a  council ;  the  result  was  that  Crook's 
command  moved  on  in  the  direction  which  they  had  been 
pursuing,  while  Terry's  forces  marched  back  to  the  Yellow- 
stone and  crossed  the  river  on  steamboats.  At  the  urgent 
request  of  General  Terry  I  accompanied  the  command  on  a 
scout  in  the  direction  of  the  Dry  Fork  of  the  Missouri,  where 
it  was  expected  we  would  strike  some  Indians. 

The  first  march  out  from  the  Yellowstone  was  made  in 
the  night,  as  we  wished  to  get  into  the  hills  without  being 
discovered  by  the  Sioux  scouts.  After  marching  three  days, 
a  little  to  the  east  of  north,  we  reached  the  buffalo  range, 
and  discovered  fresh  signs  of  Indians,  who  had  evidently 
been  killing  buffaloes.  General  Terry  now  called  oti  rne  to 
.carry  dispatches  to  Colonel  Rice,  who  was  still  camped  at 
the  mouth  of  Glendive  Creek,  on  the  Yellowstone — distant 
about  eighty  miles  from  us. 

Night  had  set  in  with  a  storm,  and  a  drizzling  rain  was 
falling  when,  at  ten  o'clock,  I  started  on  this  ride  through  a 


358 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


section  of  country  with  which  I  was  entirely  unacquainted. 
I  traveled  through  the  darkness  a  distance  of  about  thirty- 
five  miles,  and  at  daylight  I  rode  into  a  secluded  spot  at  the 
head  of  a  ravine  where  stood  a  bunch  of  ash  trees,  and  there 
I  concluded  to  remain  till  night;  for  I  considered  it  a 
dangerous  undertaking  to  cross  the  wide  prairies  in  broad 
daylight — especially  as  my  horse  was  a  poor  one. 

I  accordingly   unsaddled  my   animal,    and  ate  a   hearty 


CLOSE    QUARTERS. 

breakfast  of  bacon  and  hard  tack  which  I  had  stored  in  the 
saddle-pockets ;  then,  after  taking  a  smoke,  I  lay  down  to 
sleep,  with  my  saddle  for  a  pillow.  In  a  few  minutes  I  was 
in  the  land  of  dreams. 

After  sleeping  some  time — I  can't  tell  how  long — I  was 
suddenly  awakened  by  a  roaring,  rumbling  sound.  I  instantly 
seized  my  gun,  sprang  to  my  horse,  and  hurriedly  secreted 
him  in  the  brush.  Then  I  climbed  up  the  steep  side  of  the 
bank  and  cautiously  looked  over  the  summit;  in  the  dis- 


STILL  ON  THE  ROAD.  359 

tance  I  saw  a  large  herd  of  buffaloes  which  were  being 
chased  and  fired  at  by  twenty  or  thirty  Indians.  Occasion- 
ally a  buffalo  would  drop  out  of  the  herd,  but  the  Indians 
kept  on  until  they  had  killed  ten  or  fifteen.  They  then 
turned  back,  and  began  to  cut  up  their  game. 

I  saddled  my  horse  and  tied  him  to  a  small  tree  where  I 
could  reach  him  conveniently  in  case  the  Indians  should  dis- 
cover me  by  finding  my  trail  and  following  it.  I  then 
crawled  carefully  back  to  the  summit  of  the  bluff,  and  in  a 
concealed  position  watched  the  Indians  for  two  houi>,  dur- 
ing which  time  they  were  occupied  in  cutting  up  the  buffa- 
loes and  packing  the  meat  on  their  ponies.  When  they  had 
finished  this  work  they  rode  off  in  the  direction  whence  they 
had  come  and  on  the  line  which  I  had  proposed  to  travel.  It 
appeared  evident  to  me  that  their  camp  was  located  some- 
where between  me  and  Glendive  Creek,  but  I  had  no  idea 
of  abandoning  the  trip  on  that  account. 

1  waited  till  nightfall  before  resuming  my  journey,  and 
then  I  bore  off  to  the  east  for  several  miles,  and  by  making 
a  semi-circle  to  avoid  the  Indians,  I  got  back  on  my  original 
course,  and  then  pushed  on  rapidly  to  Colonel  Rice's  camp, 
which  I  reached  just  at  daylight. 

Colonel  Rice  had  been  fighting  Indians  almost  every  day 
since  he  had  been  encamped  at  this  point,  and  he  was  very 
anxious  to  notify  General  Terry  of  the  fact.  Of  course  I 
was  requested  to  carry  his  dispatches.  After  remaining  at 
•Glendive  a  single  day  I  started  back  to  find  General  Terry, 
and  on  the  third  day  out  1  overhauled  him  at  the  head  of 
Deer  Creek  while  on  his  way  to  Colonel  Rice's  camp.  He 
was  not,  however,  going  in  the  right  direction,  but  bearing 
too  far  to  the  east,  and  I  so  informed  him.  He  then  asked 
me  to  guide  the  command  and  I  did  so. 

On  arriving  at  Glendive  I  bade  good-bye  to  the  General 
and  his  officers  and  took  passage  on  the  steamer  Far  "West, 
which  was  on  her  way  down  the  Missouri.  At  Bismarck  I 
left  the  steamer,  and  proceeded  by  rail  to  Rochester,  New 
York,  where  I  met  my  family. 


360  LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 

Mr.  J.  Clinton  Hall,  manager  of  the  Eochester  Opera 
House,  was  very  anxious  to  have  me  play  an  engagement  at 
his  theatre.  I  agreed  to  open  the  season  with  him  as  soon 
as  I  had  got  my  drama  written  ;  and  I  did  so,  meeting  with 
an  enthusiastic  reception. 

My  new  drama  was  arranged  for  the  stage  by  J.  Y.  Ar- 
lington, the  actor.  It  was  a  five-act  play,  without  head  or 
tail,  and  it  made  no  difference  at  which  act  we  commenced 
the  performance.  Before  we  had  finished  the  season  several 
newspaper  critics,  I  have  been  told,  went  crazy  in  trying  to 
follow  the  plot.  It  afforded  us,  however,  ample  opportunity 
to  give  a  noisy,  rattling,  gunpowder  entertainment,  and  to- 
present  a  succession  of  scenes  in  the  late  Indian  war,  all  of 
which  seemed  to  give  general  satisfaction. 

From  Rochester  I  went  to  New  York  and  played  a  very 
successful  engagement  at  the  Grand  Opera  House  under  the 
management  of  Messrs.  Poole  and  Donnelly.  Thence  my 
route  took  me  to  all  the  principal  cities  in  the  Eastern, 
Western  and  Middle  States,  and  I  everywhere  met  with 
crowded  houses.  I  then  went  to  the  Pacific  Coast,  against 
the  advice  of  friends  who  gave  it  as  their  opinion  that  my 
style  of  plays  would  not  take  very  well  in  California.  I 
opened  for  an  engagement  of  two  weeks  at  the  Bush  Street 
Theatre,  in  San  Francisco,  at  a  season  when  the  theatrical 
business  was  dull  and  Ben  DeBar  and  the  Lingards  were 
playing  there  to  empty  seats.  I  expected  to  play  to  a  slim 
audience  on  the  opening  night,  but  instead  of  that  I  had  a 
fourteen  hundred  dollar  house.  Such  was  my  success  that  I 
continued  my  engagement  for  five  weeks,  and  the  theatre 
was  crowded  at  every  performance.  Upon  leaving  San 
Francisco  I  made  a  circuit  of  the  interior  towns  and  clos'ed 
the  season  at  Yirginia  City,  Nevada. 

On  my  way  East,  I  met  my  family  at  Denver,  where  they 
were  visiting  my  sisters  Nellie  and  May  who  were  then  re- 
siding there. 

Some  time  previously  I  had  made  arrangements  to  go  into 


ON  THE  STAGE  AGAIN.  361 

the  cattle  business  in  company  with  my  old  friend,  Major 
Frank  North,  and  while  I  was  in  California  he  had  built  our 
ranches  on  the  South  Fork  of  the  Dismal  river,  sixty-five 
miles  north  of  North  Platte,  in  Nebraska.  Proceeding  to 
Ogalalla,  the  headquarters  of  the  Texas  cattle  drovers,  I 
found  Major  North  there  awaiting  me,  and  together  we 
bought,  branded  and  drove  to  our  ranches,  our  first  install- 
ment of  cattle.  This  occupied  us  during  the  remainder  of 
the  summer. 

Leaving  the  cattle  in  charge  of  Major  North,  I  visited 
Red  Cloud  Agency  early  in  the  fall,  and  secured  some  Sioux 
Indians  to  accompany  me  on  my  theatrical  tour  of  1877-78. 
Taking  my  family  and  the  Indians  with  me,  I  went  directly 
to  Rochester.  There  I  left  my  oldest  daughter,  Arta,  at  a 
young  ladies'  seminary,  while  my  wife  and  youngest  child 
traveled  with  me  during  the  season. 

I  opened  at  the  Bowery  Theatre,  New  York,  September 
3d,  1877,  with  a  new  Border  Drama  entitled,  "May  Cody,  or 
Lost  and  Won,"  from  the  pen  of  Major  A.  S.  Burt,  of  the 
United  States  army.  It  was  founded  on  the  incidents  of 
the  "  Mountain  Meadow  Massacre,"  and  life  among  the  Mor- 
mons. It  was  the  best  drama  I  had  yet  produced,  and  proved 
a  grand  success  both  financially  and  artistically.  The  season 
of  1877-78  proved  to  be  the  most  profitable  one  I  had  ever 
had. 

In  February,  1878,  my  wife  became  tired  of  traveling,  and 
proceeded  to  North  Platte,  Nebraska,  where,  on  our  farm 
adjoining  the  town,  she  personally  superintended  the  erec- 
tion of  a  comfortable  family  residence,  and  had  it  all  com- 
pleted when  I  reached  there,  early  in  May.  In  this  house 
we  are  now  living,  and  we  hope  to  make  it  our  home  for 
many  years  to  come. 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 

CONCLUSION. 

AFTEK   my  arrival  at  North  Platte,  I  found  that  the 
ranchmen  or  cattle-men,  had  organized  a  regular  annual 
"  round-up,"  to  take  place  in  the  spring  of  the  year. 

The  word  "  round-up  "  is  derived  from  the  fact  that  dur- 
ing the  winter  months  the  cattle  become  scattered  over  a 
vast  tract  of  land,  and  the  ranchmen  assemble  together  in 
the  spring  to  sort  out  and  each  secure  his  own  stock.  They 
form  a  large  circle,  often  of  a  circumference  of  two  hundred 
miles,  and  drive  the  cattle  towards  a  common  centre,  where, 
all  the  stock  being  branded,  each  owner  can  readily  separate 
his  own  from  the  general  herd,  and  then  he  drives  them  to 
his  own  ranch. 

In  this  cattle  driving  business  is  exhibited  some  most 
magnificent  horsemanship,  for  the  "  cow-boys,"  as  they  are 
called,  are  invariably  skillful  and  fearless  horsemen — in  fact 
only  a  most  expert  rider  could  be  a  cow-boy,  as  it  requires 
the  greatest  dexterity  and  daring  in  the  saddle  to  cut  a  wild 
steer  out  of  the  herd. 

Major  North  was  awaiting  me,  upon  my  arrival  at  North 
Platte,  having  with  him  our  own  horses  and  men.  Other 
cattle  owners,  euch  as  Keith  and  Barton,  Coe  and  Carter, 
Jack  Pratt,  the  Walker  Brothers,  Guy  and  Sim  Lang,  Arnold 
and  Ritchie  and  a  great  many  others  with  their  outfits,  were 
assembled  and  were  ready  to  start  on  the  round-up. 

362 


DRIVING  CATTLE.  363 

My  old  friend  Dave  Perry,  who  had  presented  Buckskin 
Joe  to  me,  and  who  resided  at  North  Platte,  was  most 
anxious  to  go  with  us  for  pleasure,  and  Frank  North  told 
him  he  could,  and  have  plenty  of  fun,  provided  he  would 
furnish  his  own  horses,  provisions  and  bedding,  and  do  the 
usual  work  required  of  a  cow-boy.  This,  Dave  was  willing 
to  undertake.  We  found  him  to  be  a  good  fellow  in  camp, 
and  excellent  company. 

As  there  is  nothing  but  hard  work  on  these  round-ups, 
having  to  be  in  the  saddle  all  day,  and  standing  guard  over 
the  cattle  at  night,  rain  or  shine,  I  could  not  possibly  find 
out  where  the  fun  came  in,  that  North  had  promised  me. 
But  it  was  an  exciting  life,  and  the  days  sped  rapidly  by ; 
in  six  weeks  we  found  ourselves  at  our  own  ranch  on  Dismal 
river,  the  round-up  having  proved  a  great  success,  as  we  had 
found  all  our  cattle  and  driven  them  home. 

This  work  being  over,  I  proposed  to  spend  a  few  weeks 
with  my  family  at  North  Platte,  for  the  purpose  of  making 
their  better  acquaintance,  for  my  long  and  continued  absence 
from  home  made  me  a  comparative  stranger  under  my  own 
roof-tree.  One  great  source  of  pleasure  to  me  was  that  my 
wife  was  delighted  with  the  home  I  had  given  her  amid  the 
prairies  of  the  far  west.  Soon  after  my  arrival,  my  sisters 
Nellie  and  May,  came  to  make  us  a  visit,  and  a  delightful 
time  we  all  had  during  their  stay.  When  they  left  us,  I 
accompanied  them  to  their  home  in  Denver,  Colorado,  where 
I  passed  several  days  visiting  old  friends  and  scenes. 

Returning  to  Ogallala  I  purchased  from  Bill  Pliant,  an  ex- 
tensive cattle  drover  from  Texas,  a  herd  of  cattle,  which  I 
drove  to  my  ranch  on  the  Dismal  river,  after  which  I  bade 
my  partner  and  the  boys  good-bye,  and  started  for  the  Indi- 
an Territory  to  procure  Indians  for  my  Dramatic  Combina- 
tion for  the  season  of  1878-79. 

En  route  to  the  Territory,  I  paid  a  long  promised  visit  to 
my  sisters,  Julia — Mrs.  J.  A.  Goodman — and  Eliza — Mrs. 
Oeorge  M.  Myers — who  reside  in  Kansas,  the  state  which  the 
reader  will  remember  was  my  boyhood  home. 


364: 


LIFE  OF  BUFFALO  BILL. 


Having  secured  my  Indian  actors,  and  along  with  them 
Mr.  C.  A.  Burgess,  a  government  interpreter,  and  Ed.  A. 
Burgess,  known  as  the  "Boy  Chief  of  the  Pawnees,"  I 

started  for  Baltimore,. 
where  I  organized  my 
combination,  and 
which  w  a  s  the  largest 
troupe  I  had  yet  had 
on  the  road  ;  opening 
in  that  city  at  t  h  e 
Opera  House,  under 
the  management  of 
Hon.  John  T.  Ford, 
and  then  started  on  a 
southern  tour,  playing 
in  Washington,  Rich- 
mond and  as  far  south 
as  Savannah,  Georgia^ 
where  we  were  brought 
to  a  sudden  halt,  owing 
to  the  yellow  fever 
which  was  then  cruelly 
raging  in  the  beautiful 
cities  of  the  "Land  of 
the  cotton  and  the 
cane." 

While  playing  in 
Washington,  I  sudden- 
ly learned  from  a  re- 
port e  r  —  Washington 
newspaper  men  know 
everything  —  that  my 
Indians  were  to  be 
seized  by  the  Government  and  sent  back  to  their  agency. 
Finding  that  there  was  foundation  for  the  rumor,  I  at  once 
sought  General  Carl  Shurz,  Secretary  of  the  Interior,  and 


ONK  OF  THE 


A  NEW  PLAY. 

asked  him  if  lie  intended  depriving  me  of  my  Indian  actors. 
He  said  that  he  did,  as  the  Indians  were  away  from  their 
reservation  without  leave.  I  answered  that  I  had  had  Indians 
with  me  the  year  before  and  nothing  had  been  said  about  it ; 
but  Commissioner  Ilaight  replied  that  the  Indians  were  the 
u  wards  of  the  government,"  and  were  not  allowed  off  of 
their  reservation. 

I  told  the  Commissioner  that  the  Indians  were  frequently 
off  of  their  reservations  out  west,  as  I  had  a  distinct  remem- 
brance of  meeting  them  upon  several  occasions  "  on  the  war 
path,"  and  furthermore  I  thought  I  was  benefitting  the  In- 
dians as  well  as  the  government,  by  taking  them  all  over  the 
United  States,  and  giving  them  a  correct  idea  of  the  customs, 
life,  etc.,  of  the  pale  faces,  so  that  when  they  returned  to 
their  people  they  could  make  known  all  they  had  seen. 

After  a  conversation  with  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior, 
the  Commissioner  concluded  to  allow  me  to  retain  the  Indians, 
by  appointing  me  Indian  Agent,  provided  I  wrould  give  the 
necessary  bonds,  and  pledge  myself  to  return  them  in  safety 
to  their  agency — which  terms  I  agreed  to. 

From  Savannah,  Georgia,  having  changed  my  route  on 
account  of  the  yellow  fever,  I  jumped  my  entire  company  to 
Philadelphia,  and  at  once  continued  on  a  north-eastern  tour, 
having  arranged  with  the  well-known  author  and  dramatist, 
Colonel  Prentiss  Ingraham,  to  write  a  play  for  me. 

The  drama  entitled  "  The  Knight  of  the  Plains,  or  Buffalo 
Bill's  Best  Trail,"  was  first  produced  at  New  Haven,  Conn. ; 
it  has  proved  a  great  success,  and  I  expect  to  play  it  in  Eng- 
land, where  I  purpose  to  go  next  season  on  a  theatrical  tour, 
having  been  urged  to  do  so  by  my  many  friends  abroad. 

After  a  successful  tour  of  six  weeks  on  the  Pacific  Slope, 
thus  ending  the  season  of  1878-79,  I  am  at  my  home  at 
North  Platte,  Nebraska,  for  the  summer ;  and  thus  ends  the 
account  of  my  career  as  far  as  it  has  gone. 

THE  END. 


279 


